Red Currant
by skinst
Summary: What happens when a former tyrant comes back to life, put on a leash by the God of Destruction and is not the happiest camper, he finds amusement in the most unlikely of people? Set after Dragonball Super. Crossposted from ao3. Complete.
1. Sight

Not a single soul in the multiverse would've ever thought such a thing possible had they not witnessed it for themselves, but then again, the idea of it was nothing short of sincere impossibilities, at least, then.

Now it became but a thrum in the everyday extraordinary lives of the Z-Fighters of planet Earth, whether they had been from there or not. But this is neither a story about Goku or Vegeta or even any of their offspring, but rather on an under appreciated fighter who just so happened to be good at being good, at fighting and baseball…

… who unintentionally became one of the most renowned warriors throughout the cosmos as the one person in the galaxy who turned the eye of one galactic tyrant.

* * *

Parties had a way of bringing people together in odd ways; it was true enough for Earth and all of its strange and varied inhabitants, including visitors of a Godly variety. As it was now, with the Universes restored after the battle royale between them, some steps needed to be taken into account in regards to one of the fighters from Universe 7.

He had been brought back to life, as was the word of the foolish hero who chose him for the tournament, but Frieza was a loose cannon. If left unchecked, everyone knew he'd take over the entire Universe, and then conquer the land of the gods.

It was only lucky that said space emperor had all but lost his army, the majority of his known clan, and was currently weaker than the current gods that presided over the Universe. With that in mind, Lord Beerus certainly had a plan for the tyrant. One that involved putting a proverbial collar on him that would

Not that Frieza was happy about it. But he never really was, so it made no difference. Even so, there was some glory to officially being a destroyers accomplice - very few had the honour of such a title. Frieza took what was given to him and ran with it - it was better than going back to that hell.

And so, the party on Earth was underway, with everyone enjoying the rich variety of Earthian foods. Lord Beerus was also present, but up on stage as he waited for another lord of a different nature to make his entrance. Shortly after Beerus took his seat, Frieza walked in, and took everyone by surprise.

The tyrant was not wearing his usual battle armour (or nothing at all, as it was his true form) but rather a handsome purple-grey suit, clearly tailored for him, emblazoned with gold accents. Well, if he was going to become a destroyer's lackey, he may as well look good doing it!

His attire caught the notice of nearly everyone, and Goku in all of his intelligent glory said quietly to Vegeta, "hey, Frieza sure looks different. Ever seen him wear something like that?"

"It's his formal suit from his own planet," the prince answered gruffly, although there was the ever present annoyance in his tone that never seemed to leave, "I only ever saw him wear it once."

"Huh," the other saiyan looked curious about the attire, but left it at that.

"So that's Frieza, huh?" Yamcha peered on as Beerus spoke to the tyrant from where he sat, "first time I've ever gotten a good look at him…"

The retired fighter might've been retired, but he still kept himself in shape nonetheless, and even he could tell - Frieza's power was rather overwhelming. It was no wonder the present company had had so much trouble with him - back in the day.

Yamcha figured they'd have no trouble with him now… or rather, he hoped.

At least Lord Beerus seemed to hate him.

"Frankly I would prefer you to remain in your flower garden-," Beerus huffed, and Frieza growled, "-but a foolish promise is but a foolish promise. You're alive, and so, you'll become my official subject of Destruction while I sleep. However, if you abuse the position," the God's eyes narrowed, "and I will know, there will be consequences far worse than the Hell you've thus visited."

Frieza nodded stiffly. He knew better than to not agree.

"Very well - Whis," he nodded to his attendant, who waved his wand with an affirmative. On Frieza appeared a side pinned cape the same colour as Beerus's skin, pinned with the crest of the 7th Universe.

"While you wear that, it represents that you're on official business from me," The God gestured to himself, "wear it proudly, and most of all, wear it with honour."

"Understood," it was the first time Frieza had spoken, and while it was clear he wasn't happy, it didn't seem like he minded the novel touch to his attire.

With formalities out of the way, everyone began to dig into the feast. Frieza, it seemed, was not interested and merely hung at the back of the room, arms folded and seemingly deep in thought.

* * *

He had been given a whole new life, as promised, and a whole new chance to conquer his Universe - albeit with a much shorter leash than he had ever had before, and unlikely any conquering to really be done to soil a god's name.

Frieza had never been tethered before, really, and he already decided he hated it. Hated it to the very core of his being. He was the boss! He was the prince! He was the LORD!

The only reason he even so much as tolerated being tethered in such a way was that he was well away from the torment of Earth's hell. At the very least, he could handle being alive and able to wreak destruction in Beerus's name rather than hang from a tree being serenaded by cuddly plushies.

Psh.

Hopefully he could find something decent to do at this God forsaken party full of literally everyone he hated, which was to say nearly everyone in the entire Universe. Nearly.

There were a couple of people at least he was fairly neutral on, mostly because he hadn't really met them. One of which was mostly off to the side like he was, though it didn't seem to be from a lack of friendly connections.

If anything, it was from a supreme amount of sheer awkward.

The tyrant had a little bit of a giggle about that. How pathetic. He could tell from his build and attire that the man was at least relatively experienced in martial arts. The scars on his face certainly added an element of that… and maybe a touch of charm?

Maybe. At least it showed he gave it his all in fights - his red eyes glanced towards the saiyans he hated so much - the pair of them didn't have a noticeable scar on them. If anything it made him hate them more.

Filthy monkeys.

His eyes roamed back to the lone human who seemed to be quietly eating on his own. Occasionally a floating… was it a feline? Yes a blue feline, would come over and try to talk to him, but the human (he assumed) would merely wave her off and insist he was fine.

What a liar.

There was nothing else better to do at this party, so maybe harassing a human would be fun. He walked over to one of the tables, picked up a wine glass, filled it with his own wine, thank you very much, and wandered over to where Yamcha was standing, swirling his wine in his glass as he did so.

* * *

It felt like forever ago that Yamcha felt like a top league fighter, and being among the current top 10 in not only his Universe, but countless others as well. It was overwhelming, if he was honest with himself, and it made him feel like he really wasn't in the group anymore.

Truthfully, he hadn't been for a long time, and it was glaringly obvious at a party like this.

Everyone had moved on, too. He looked around at the sea of faces, much older than he remembered last… with families and their families having families. He once dreamed of getting married and having his own children. More and more, though, it seemed like a distant dream. He at least had a good job now, and a good income… it didn't help the loneliness, though.

"So, what do you call yourself, human?"

Yamcha nearly jumped out of his skin, and he had to cover his mouth to conceal the yelp that nearly came out. Right beside him was standing Frieza, a neutral look on his face and a glass of wine in his right hand.

"Y-you're… Frieza, right?" he stammered.

"Oho, you're aware of my greatness? Nice to know word of my return gets around~" The icejin swirled his wine, and the smile slipped from his face, "but I do believe I asked you a question, Earthling."

"O-Oh, right, it's Yamcha," he answered back quickly, "sorry, I didn't- well. Never mind," he shook his head, "it's nice to… meet you?" the human offered shakily.

"Hmph," Frieza blinked once, "so, this party sucks and I literally hate every single person in this room. And you?"

Well, that was a nice way to say hello, Yamcha thought to himself, though he had to remind himself he was talking to Frieza here. It was practically a compliment that he wasn't blowing up the room out of sheer annoyance.

"Well… I'm here because I used to fight alongside most of the people here," he nodded to the room at large, "but I don't really measure up nowdays, so I mostly work as support."

"Hmmm~" Frieza took a sip of his wine, "a rather pathetic end, don't you think?"

"I guess," Yamcha couldn't deny that - he would've much preferred to go out according to his own choice, rather than being forced out by more talented fighters, "it was fun while it lasted," he sighed and leaned against the wall.

The tyrant almost felt sorry for him. Almost. He mostly just felt disgust that a fighter would just give up. Normally he relished at the idea of someone bowing to his mercy, but no, this was a fighter who had simply been outclassed, and he didn't really like it.

Maybe he took it a bit more personally than normal, namely… he glanced over at Goku, and didn't bother to suppress a growl.

"But, you know, I moved on."

Frieza blinked, caught off guard slightly by the words uttered, "what?"

"I decided to become better at other things, you know? Stop wallowing in the past and just… do something else."

"Tch," Frieza nearly wanted to yell at him for that remark. What he was in the past was everything, and yet… this human could just give it up? How pathetic!

Then again, this human didn't once control 70% of the known Universe, did he? Whatever he did in his pathetic life was mere pebbles to what Frieza once was!

"So what is it that you do now, if you're no longer a warrior?" he hadn't meant to sound annoyed, but he didn't really care that Yamcha cringed somewhat. If anything, it amused him how scared this man was of him.

"I uh, mostly help out some of my other friends, but I also play baseball!" he offered, "it's a game here that pays pretty well if you get good at it. My martial arts made me pretty decent at the game, ironically…"

"Playing a game professionally? Hm. Juvenile, but I suppose if the glove fits…"

Well, Yamcha hadn't expected Frieza to be nice, but even so… "erm, well, other than that, what do you plan to do, Frieza?"

"Aside from the whims of Beerus the Destroyer, you mean?" he sounded even more annoyed.

"Well, yeah… I'm sure you'd be able to handle any task he gives you no problem!"

"Hmm…" Frieza supposed that was true. The edge on his tone disappeared, "so, how did you come to associate with your 'friends'?"

"Oh, well, other than fighting together…" Yamcha rubbed the back of his head, "me and Bulma kinda dated for a while…"

Bulma? Oh, the blue haired wrench who was married to Vegeta. Frieza's eyes narrowed as Yamcha prattled on.

"... felt pretty crap about that for a while, but we're still good friends, so that's nice."

"Hmph," Frieza stared at the human woman, "if she picked a filthy monkey over you, then clearly she wasn't worth your time."

Yamcha blinked. Was that a compliment? From Frieza of all people? It did catch him off guard, but the human continued onwards, "I dunno… I mean she's rich and a genius."

"Psh, set your sights higher!" the tyrant huffed, "so what if she is? She's one of billions who picked a lowly monkey has her choice of a mate. That automatically makes your preferences far better."

Yamcha wasn't exactly a fan of Frieza outright insulting his friends, but by the same token… he peered over at said friends. None of them were really paying much attention, except maybe Goku glancing over once or twice. The human figured it was more to keep an eye on the alien next to him than anything else.

And he had to admit… Bulma picking Vegeta over him didn't exactly mesh well with him for quite some time after it happened. In one way, Frieza had a point.

So, he merely smiled and shrugged, "well, thanks I guess."

Frieza huffed and smirked, lifting his wine glass to Yamcha's own drink. Surprised at the initiative, but smiling nonetheless, the retired fighter clinged his glass against Frieza's own and drunk. The noise attracted a couple of onlookers, who were mostly shocked that Frieza had made any semblance of a friend.

And that that friend was Yamcha.


	2. Stars

The party was a week long, so naturally, mostly everyone stuck around for the week, either out of respect or because no one could turn down a great party. Both Zeno's even made an appearance, but it wasn't for long, as they had their work cut out for them, too.

There were also talks between Frieza and Beerus, Yamcha noticed, as while the former emperor occasionally showed up to scowl at the usual group, he often disappeared for long periods with the God of Destruction. More than likely to get up to speed on what he needed to do before the party's end. He didn't mind so much, of course, but it did surprise him when the tyrant picked him out again for another conversation.

This time it was outside, where Yamcha was having some quiet time in the magnificent gardens, a glass of some kind of alcohol in his hand. He drank it down without much thought before the unmistakable voice curled through the darkness.

"You better not drink wine like that."

Yamcha nearly spat out his drink.

He started coughing as Frieza walked over, a chuckle on his lips, "are you really so surprised by my presence, or is my ability to cloak my energy finally working on you?"

Oh. That explained a lot.

"I guess-" cough "-so," Yamcha wiped his face with a serviette, "so, erm, all done with your talks for the day?"

"Don't get me started," Frieza's tail swished angrily as he sat down next to the human, "those juvenile talks have had me infuriated. It's like Lord Beerus thinks of me as some toddler who needs a leash!"

Okay, not a good topic, clearly. Still… maybe it was healthy to vent? No harm in trying, he would normally think, except it was Frieza next to him. He did have an extra glass of alcohol, since he had grabbed a couple… it wasn't exactly fun being an outsider, or feeling like one, after all...

So, now he passed it over to the angry icejin, "here, have some of this?"

"What is it?" Frieza took the glass with interest, his earlier annoyance seemingly gone as he took a sniff.

"We call them cocktails here - they're pretty strong," Yamcha explained.

"Hm. It'll do," the other being sipped it, and a look of surprise came over his face as he pulled back to stare at the glass. Frieza had not been keen to try any of Earth's food… but this drink… he hated to admit it to himself, and he wasn't prepared to admit it out loud just yet, but it was good.

He was beginning to understand why Lord Beerus was so obsessed with keeping this planet intact. Before he knew it, he had drunk the whole thing down.

Yamcha noticed that of course, but decided not to comment. Instead, he merely finished off his drink and looked out into the night sky. It was a clear one, and where they will had quite the magnificent view of the stars. The human had never really paid much attention to them other than 'huh, pretty', but given the being beside him -

"Say, Frieza…" he decided to ask, "have you been to any of those places up there?"

"Of course I have," he scoffed, "I used to control 70% of the Universe, after all. Interstellar travel was something I did every day of my life, since I was born."

Instead of intimidated, Yamcha looked curious, "so, you were born in space? Not on a planet?"

"Technically, yes," Frieza swished his tail once more where he sat - but it was more leisurely. It was strange, but the human was starting to guess a lot of the icejin's body language from his tail alone - maybe it was living with Puar all those years and learning to read hers that helped a lot in this regard.

Thanks Puar.

"I am told that my father had assistance when having me, unlike when he had my brother," Frieza shrugged, but Yamcha's eyes widened.

"Wait a minute - you have a brother? And- a dad? Not a mum?"

The icejin gave the human an icy look that he took to be condescension, "not everyone in the universe breeds the same way."

"O-oh, well I knew that, ahahaha…" great, the nerves were showing up again, "I guess I was just surprised, that's all!"

Nice save. Frieza didn't look like he wanted to kill him anymore, "is that so?"

"Y-yeah. I was around when King Piccolo had his son after all…"

"Oh? The namekian?" Less ice, thank God.

"Yeah! His father was defeated by Goku as a kid, but before he died, he literally spat out an egg that became Piccolo today," Yamcha shrugged, "though, I guess we sort of forget to call him Piccolo Junior. Maybe he doesn't like the reminder."

"Hmm…" Frieza blinked, "well then, if you must know, no. My race only has one perceived gender, and we can reproduce by ourselves or with assistance from another, should we choose it," the icejin actually looked thoughtful, "it is said that reproducing with assistance creates far stronger beings… which would explain why I am leagues above my brother in power."

"So your brother…"

"No longer around," Frieza huffed, "and good riddance. If he was still alive, it's very possible we would've fought for control of this Universe… good thing he was taken out before I had to kill him myself."

"Huh…" Yamcha was very glad that he hadn't been around to witness that fight, "no love lost then, huh?"

"Hardly," Frieza chuckled, "although in the past…" his speech wandered off as he appeared thoughtful for a moment, but eventually shook his head and stood, "it no longer matters," he turned to Yamcha, "how about we brave whatever lunacy is going on right now in the hall and get some food? I've never had food from your planet before, and I suppose it must be tolerable if a God likes it."

Loath as he was to admit it.

"Uh, sure!" Yamcha had nothing else better to do, so he stood up and smiled, "what kind of food do you normally eat?"

"I favour things out of water. What is that called here?"

"Seafood,"

"I see, seafood then."

* * *

It was too damn delicious.

Even for his refined tastes, Earth food was exquisite. Frieza knew that his race was capable of eating pretty much anything, he had been dining on nothing but the finest food from galaxies, so for him to very much enjoy this crustation before him was a very high compliment indeed. If he wasn't a well mannered prince, he honestly would be stuffing himself.

Then again… he peered over at Lord Beerus, who was stuffing himself.

Ridiculous. Having more manners than a God.

Oh well. Good reason he planned to take his place, then. Bring some class back into the role.

"What is this yellow substance?" he asked his wayward companion. He could hear some chatter about him in the background, but Frieza did not care. All he cared about was filling his belly and hopefully having a good long sleep.

Heavens knows he needed it.

"Oh, that's cheese," Yamcha offered. He knew his friends would probably want to know what the hell he was doing, but that was fine. He didn't know what the hell he was doing except being nice, but it seemed to be keeping everyone happy, including himself, so hopefully that'd help his argument somewhat. "It's a dairy food, made from milk."

"Hm," Frieza tried it. It smelt a bit weird but it was quite delicious with the 'seafood', if he had to admit.

While the tyrant enjoyed his food, he continued to ponder his future actions. He had been given the task of abstaining from destruction from the time being, as the 7th Universe needed to rebuild their mortal population, and especially as Beerus was going to sleep soon for a few years. It seemed as though the other side of the spectrum would be busy for many years to come, as he peered over at Shin, who was happily conversing with Gohan.

Too bad.

* * *

Yamcha had left Frieza's side for the time being to have a quick conversation with his friends, of which were very concerned about what was going on between himself and the galactic traveller. Yamcha, on the other hand, didn't seem concerned.

"I mean sure, I'm scared but we're just talking," he shrugged, "and besides, he did help us save the entire Universe."

"Yeah, I guess that's true!" Ever naive Goku, but Yamcha supposed that worked to his advantage at this point.

"Besides, the majority of us here were villians or tried to kill Goku at one point, remember?" also a fair point, much to everyone's annoyance.

"Just be careful, alright?" was all Bulma could say, to which the human nodded. He'd be careful. Though…

He glanced over to Frieza enjoying the food before him, and wondered if he needed to for now.


	3. Space

Frieza wasn't sure himself what made him seek out the human's company during the time at the party. Maybe it was simply because his company didn't make him want to rip out his own ears and kill everything in the room… he had to admit the human was a rather sensible and handsome creature.

Yes… the tyrant glanced over his human companion as they were once again outside on their own, looking at the stars once more as Yamcha asked more about his travels in space. It seemed as though the human hadn't been to as many worlds as his companions, despite nearly everyone else in the room fighting intergalactic wars. He supposed that Yamcha had put up his fighting gloves before then.

Ah well… he didn't mind retelling stories of his travels. Not to a captive audience.

"... there is one world I recall that caused me no degree of grief at first," Frieza leaned back on his hands as his tail swished, once again an unconscious clue to the mood of the being who wielded it, "the gravity had a very odd effect on everyone except the local inhabitants. To this day I'm not sure how it worked."

"Oh yeah? What did it do?" Yamcha was awfully curious about it, it seemed.

"It made it so that it confused our sensors," Frieza flexed his fingers, "right was left, up was down. The planet frustrated me so much that I left before I conquered it."

The mental image of Frieza and his army flailing about in the strange environment had Yamcha clutching his gut and laughing, almost as if he was trying not to, "oh-oh I shouldn't laugh but-"

"No, I suppose it's funny now that I look back on it, although at the time I very much wanted to blow the planet up~" Frieza responded with a smirk and a wave of his hand.

"I'm surprised you didn't," the human would later wonder why Frieza didn't smite him on the spot for laughing at his troubles, but it seemed that there was a degree of tolerance there. After all, it wasn't a current event he was giggling at, but a far off one from the past.

Which raised the question…

"Hey Frieza… what WAS the planet your race came from like?" maybe it would answer some questions, or raise more.

"Hmm…" Frieza pondered this, "I never actually saw it with my own eyes, but my father would often tell me about it. It was a ringed tropical planet with two polar caps, and my own kind was considered fairly rare as it was… we preferred the warmth of the middle of the planet, I was told."

Yes, his kind… Frieza felt no kinship with his own species, rather he felt great pride that he was considered the strongest of them, but other than that, it really did dawn on him that there were probably not many of his kind left in the Universe.

He didn't even know if his wayward home planet still existed. He only knew that the suit he wore right now was worn by royalty of his race, and that he had been the prince, along with all the customs that afforded him.

"I suppose I'm probably one of the last Ice Demons around," he smirked, "how befitting of me. The last of my own race is the greatest~"

Yamcha knew better than to think Frieza was lonely, only because it seemed as though the tyrant was sincerely proud of being both the strongest and potentially last of his kind. Ice Demons, huh… a strange name for those who liked warmer weather. Maybe it was more to do with their personalities.

Made sense.

"In any case~" Yamcha looked over - Frieza was holding a bottle and two glasses, "care to share some of this?"

"What is it?"

"100 year old wine."

"Wow, I'd be honoured!" Yamcha took the offered glass as Frieza poured out half a glass for him, as well as himself. It was a dark red brew, and the scent of it was something out of this world.

"Don't you dare drink that straight away," the tyrant growled and Yamcha was suddenly reminded of who was sitting next to him, "have you no class?"

"Oh, w-well," the human rubbed the back of his head, "I don't drink wine very much, sorry."

"You need to let wine breathe before you drink it," the icejin swirled his own glass, "brings out a more exquisite taste."

"Ooh…"

The pair sat in silence for a while as the wine 'breathed', and when Frieza took a sip, Yamcha followed suit. He had never had a drink quite like it, and the immense flavour certainly covered up the alcohol content. He was no light weight, but this stuff… was deceptively strong. It seemed as though Frieza could handle it just fine…

But it was hitting him hard.

"This wine is incredible, thanks for sharing!" he set the glass down carefully, "boy does it pack a wallop…"

"Really, now?" Frieza looked highly amused as he waved his own glass a little, "that's all it takes to get you buzzed, human?"

"It's really strong for me," Yamcha admitted,

"Well, I suppose 100 year old wine is more than a normal lifespan for one of your kind, isn't it…"

"Actually, living to 100 is considered a very good age," the human giggled a little, "I'd be surprised if I make it to that. But then, I've died twice, so I guess I'm glad to be here at all."

"Died twice?" Frieza blinked, "and you came back?"

"Yeah," Yamcha scratched his cheek, where his scar was, "I guess that's the plus to having dragon balls and friends who can find them."

No kidding, Frieza thought to himself. Then again, he had minions do the same for him once. Those wish orbs were just too powerful… to bring someone back to life again and again… to do anything, really. Even immortality.

Maybe he could track down said balls on Earth when he decided-

"Ah, sorry…"

His thoughts were interrupted when Yamcha (was his face red?) looked rather sheepish, "I better head back to my room, this stuff is really kicking my butt."

It was a big glass dammit.

"Oh," that caught him off guard, and he had to snicker, "aren't you a lightweight."

"It's stronger than it looks!"

"Weakling."

"It was a big glass!"

"Excuses, Yamcha."

"Mean."

Frieza had to snicker at the pout on his face, "of course I am."

* * *

It didn't take long to get back to his room, though with Frieza taunting him the entire way back, he had to wonder if it had been worth admitting that he was a bit tipsy. Okay, so maybe it was fun to banter with such a powerful being - and not be killed for it later.

He hoped.

"Um, well, thank you, anyway. Sorry for being such a lightweight," he offered with a sheepish smile.

"You'll just have to build up your tolerance with more~"

Yamcha didn't know about that, but he wasn't going to say no. He merely giggled and nodded, "see you tomorrow?"

It was only then that it dawned on him that he was actively looking for him during the parties now. Their first conversation had been fun, as had their second. He had learned a lot about Frieza in just the conversations over the last few days, and he honestly wanted to continue to talk to him. Between his friends having their own lives and feeling like he was outside something… this was something internal. Something that he could have for a short time the party was going on.

"Maybe I will," swish, swish, went Frieza's tail as he answered, "we shall see."

Yamcha smiled at that, and bid him a goodnight.

As the door closed, the former Emperor stared at the door for a moment. He lifted his hand and rested it on his chin in thought. What was this… emotion? It was curling inside him as much as his tail was swishing around behind him in agitation.

He frowned.

'Frustrating.'


	4. Necklace

It was a curious thing, friendship. It could come from forged bonds between others, or completely out of nowhere. Sometimes, the most unlikely of people became friends, either by proxy or as a real member of one's life.

Yamcha liked to believe that he was fairly fortunate. Mostly. He had his good spirits regardless of the obstacles thrown at him, and always tried to remain upbeat. He could safely say it was one of his positive traits.

Apparently charming villains was also one of his day jobs now. At least, that's what his friends were saying.

But in the wise words of Puar…

"I think it's kind of nice that you're getting along so well with him."

It had been morning after sleeping off the alcohol in his body (he was still convinced that wine had at LEAST 50% alcohol content) when his best friend had come to check up on him. He had mostly been hanging around Oolong and leaving Yamcha to his own devices, but since he had seen both him and Frieza walking off towards rooms together, the flying feline had had his concerns.

"You really think so?" Yamcha honestly thought that Puar would be the first one to throw up his dukes and want to beat Frieza up if he ever hurt him. Wasn't that what friends did?

"Yeah!" the flying cat looked happy, "I mean, you were right! Most of Goku's friends now have tried to kill him… what if you became good friends with Frieza? He doesn't seem to want to hurt you, AND you would have a powerful ally!"

"I dunno, that wine he gave me sure sent me spinning."

"I actually agree with Frieza on the fact that you are a lightweight."

"Jee, thanks Puar."

The cat had to giggle.

He did consider his current situation. Frieza seemed interested in him, at least as a companion when he wasn't engaged with the Gods or giving death glares to the saiyans in the room, and everyone at least seemed relieved that the tyrant was occupied. No doubt, they had some gratefulness for his help towards saving the Universe, but it didn't change the fact that Frieza was still, for all intents and purposes, evil, had had big plans that he made no secret about in wanting the top job as God of the Multiverses, and seemed to have zero remorse at the idea of slaughtering almost everyone in the room.

But there was also a sense of calm that seemed to come about him whenever he and Yamcha 'hung out' - it didn't seem as though Frieza had any sinister plans for him, at least. It brought him only a small amount of comfort.

"He has been pretty nice to me, you know, for an evil emperor who almost owned the entire Universe," he mused almost to himself, but Puar giggled, which caused him to at least smirk. He supposed it was amusing.

Still… the unusual friendship he had managed to strike with Frieza was one that he honestly didn't mind having, and continuing. Even if he still found himself scared of the icejin from time to time, he felt that was a natural reaction to having someone around who could potentially get into a mood and kill him.

He decided it was weird being friends with a villain.

He wondered how Bulma had done it with Vegeta during his villain years.

Suddenly, he didn't want to know.

Ah well.

"Well Puar, whatever happens, I'm just glad I made a friend."

* * *

Wearing clothing was somewhat of an oddity that he wasn't quite used to, Frieza decided.

While he liked his formal suit just fine, he had to admit he much preferred to just walk around in his own skin in his true form. He supposed it was different when in his other forms… not that he really cared anyway.

It was nice to relax for the day. Right now, he was lying on his back on his rather decently sized bed, his legs folded over one another and playing with the crest of Universe 7 in his fingers. The icejin watched as he flicked it from left to right along his knuckles, his mind in thought.

Frieza was not one to settle, not for anything nor anyone. He wanted the best, and only the best, because that was what he deserved. So of course it was his goal to be a God! Not work for one.

He grabbed the badge, a growl in his throat. He was the one who had workers, not the one being the worker!

The tyrant took a deep breath and let it out. Calm down, this is beneath you.

He put the badge down, back with the cape it was attached to in the first place, and sat up with a sigh. He hated fighting with his own brain on things he really didn't want to give a damn about. Frieza just wanted to rule the known Universe and have his lackeys do all the work. Except he was fresh out of lackeys.

Damn.

Well, some of the planets he still technically owned and conquered would likely still be around. All he had to do was go BACK to those planets, now with the hand of a God behind him, and simply… convince them to come back onto the force. And this time, he wouldn't make the mistake of trying to get on the rough side of the saiyans, loathe as he was to admit. He would not hide from them, but he wasn't going to let them run his life, either. He would work for Beerus… for now.

With that decided, the icejin stood up and stretched. Maybe today he would go and harass that human some more.

A smile formed on his face at the thought… he couldn't believe that he had gotten to know that fighter, if he could even be called that. He was nothing power wise… but something about him was interesting to say the least, more than what he had already observed, anyway. He could become a valuable asset to his army-

Frieza paused. Something seemed off with that thought.

He shrugged and went to get dressed - no matter. He wouldn't think about it more for now.

* * *

The last day of the party was mostly a wind down so that everyone would be on their way back to their various homes, and their various jobs around the multiverse. It had been a chance for Yamcha in particular to go out and look around the area. They had brought food from Earth, of course, but where they were was rich with minerals and beautiful stones. Yamcha knew a fair bit about different metals from Earth at least, since he had spent the majority of his time in the desert growing up, and often times people dumped stuff out there that they really had no business dumping.

The former warrior wasn't a dumpster diver by any means, but now and then, something could grab his attention. Today was no different. As he searched around outside the giant mansion where they were having their party, he spotted something lying in the sand, and shining brightly in the light of the two suns. Yamcha went over to pick it up, and identified the lump as a very lustrous metal.

He smiled - it would do perfectly.

* * *

"Oh, there you are~"

The smooth voice was unmistakable now, and in the past might've brought him some degree of fear. But the events of the party had Yamcha turning towards the sound with a sheepish smile, "hi, Frieza. Were you looking for me?"

Said former emperor huffed, "I merely noticed your absence," but his tail was making slow curls behind him - a sign of happiness? He was still getting to know the other's body language.

"Oh, well, sorry about that," the human scratched his cheek, "I went out to do a bit of exploring in this place," he shrugged, "old habits die hard."

"Huh…" It was something foreign to Frieza to simply want to go out and explore. He went out and conquered, not explored. A playful idea, for certain… too bad he had no need for such whimsy.

"Anyway, today's the last day of the party, so I guess you'll be heading back into space?"

Yamcha's question made Frieza brush away the thoughts and focus more on the present, and he nodded, bemusement in his tone, "that's right. Though to be honest, even I'm not sure what I will do first."

A bold faced lie. He knew exactly what he was going to do. He was going to go find his planets, get himself a new ship, and get some lackeys. But Yamcha didn't need to know that.

Why, he didn't know.

"Ah, well… I didn't think we'd see each other again," that line annoyed Frieza slightly, "so I made you this," he held out a small box.

Well. Colour him surprised. The icejin blinked, took the box, blinked again and looked back at the human, "you made me something?"

"Yeah!" He had had a little help from some of Bulma's tech, of course, mostly the use of a portable metal press. Why she had such a thing was beyond him, but it made making a chain a heck of a lot easier, especially one as fine as the one he ended up forging from the metal.

But he suspected that Frieza didn't need nor want to know that.

"Truthfully, it was nice to spend time with someone at this party," the human smiled, "I didn't ever imagine I'd be able to talk to you, Frieza, but, well… it was nice! So I wanted you to have something to keep. You know… a good memory kinda keepsake?"

It was a good thing they were alone right now, Frieza thought to himself as he opened the box. Inside was a shimmering silver coloured necklace, though the metal used was clearly not silver, but something far stronger. The icejin took it out of the box and looked it over - it was a little rough around the edges, but one had to expect that from someone that he suspected had never made something this fine before.

Still… he found himself momentarily speechless. Yamcha had made this himself, because he wanted to, not because he was obliged or ordered to, merely because he felt like their interactions had been worth preserving in the form of a gift. Maybe the human was just that kind of person… maybe.

He glanced up at him. He had to be sure; "why are you giving me this?"

He had to be sure.

"It was really all I could think of that you might like," Yamcha's face fell somewhat, "not to your taste?"

"No, it's fine," he wouldn't think further on it, and he smiled before turning around, "well, put it on me."

"Oh, r-right!" Yamcha walked closer and took the necklace out of Frieza's hand to clip it around his neck.

Frieza turned back around once it was done. Him standing there in his formal attire, with the cloak that Beerus gave him, the crest of their shared universe… and the glimmering silver chain… Yamcha could feel a little bit of heat in his cheeks.

He looked like the royalty that he knew Frieza was.

"It-it suits you!"

"Hmph, of course it does~" he could play it cool as much as he wanted, but internally Frieza's mind was going a mile a minute. "Thank you for the gift," he tapped the chain, "perhaps we will meet again… in due time."

"You mean, you'll visit Earth?" the human asked curiously, though he had to wonder… would that be met with a good reception?

Unlikely.

"Perhaps I may, perhaps I may not," the icejin shrugged, "only time will tell."

"Well… it was nice to meet you regardless, Frieza," Yamcha offered with a smile.

"Mm. Likewise," with a casual wave, the space emperor left the hallway to make it back to his room.

It was only there that he closed the door and leaned against it, and looked down at the shining metal on his chest, resting against the purple cloth.

It's links, he noticed, were all somewhat unique in the sense they weren't all the same shape. He had to smile a little bit at that. It was a little bit unorthodox, and it was obviously made in a bit of a hurry… but to Frieza, it added to its charm.

Maybe he would see the human again. With his new ability to suppress his energy signature, he could all but sneak onto Earth if he felt like it without those annoying saiyans getting in his way and demanding a tell all for what he was doing. They didn't need to know a damned thing.

And wouldn't it just be the funniest thing ever… Frieza chuckled to himself, a smirk on his face…

Yes. Wouldn't it just be the funniest thing ever…

… if he bonded further with one of their very own fighters.


	5. Vacation

It wasn't all that hard to get a small fleet under his command again. Even with the careful, and now very watchful gaze of the gods, Frieza didn't do anything that he knew he couldn't get away with. Space was in his very nature, his very body - to keep him chained to one planet was equivalent of the same torture, if not worse, than the prison he had been in, in Earth's hell.

Having but a small portion of the galactic empire he once had was enough for the time being. He had a ship, people at his beck and call, and could finally just relax again after the annoyance of Earth's Hell and Earth's people and literally anything to do with that planet really.

Frieza still wondered how the heck he had ended up literally battling to save his own Universe… he supposed it all ended well at the end of the day. Still annoying though.

Not to mention being stuck in his true form for so long. He had somewhat become acclimated to the increased power surging through his body for the longest time, but it was still uncomfortable to be in for so long. It was a relief to finally get back to his contained first form and conserve his power for another day…

Should he ever need it again.

After all, he could take care of Beerus's work without transforming even into his second stage, let alone his final one, or even his Golden form.

Part of him was curious about how much further he could evolve his body… he blamed that accursed saiyan for even putting the idea in his head! Training isn't something he particularly fancied… after all, he never needed to train. He was born with an immense power level, so much so that he needed to contain it under four forms.

If anything, his 'training' had merely been learning that and nothing more.

But now, as he lay there on his bed, he found himself victim to yet another scourge he had suffered from in Hell - boredom. There wasn't much to do now that he had claimed back some of his empire, his ship and travelling through space, he couldn't do much except wait for orders.

How very annoying.

"I went out to do a bit of exploring in this place; old habits die hard."

Frieza blinked.

He sat up as Yamcha's words echoed in his mind. Exploring? Him? Such a childish concept… and yet… he put his hand to his chin in thought. Perhaps exploring parts of the Universe that were being born anew thanks to the wish on the Super Dragon balls would be good for resource tapping? New technology or even new minerals that were present in the Universe that he had not known about… even potential bases of operations for the future.

He touched the necklace around his neck - Frieza had not taken it off once. It was surprisingly durable, which suited the Emperor just fine. He liked things that lasted.

Still, how long had it been since that party? He flicked the tip of his tail a little bit, how long indeed… months? Years? He wasn't exactly knowledgeable with Earthian time and rather used the galactic standard. So how much was it in the Galactic standard? He did a quick calculation - 4 months.

He grinned to himself. Maybe he was due to visit.

* * *

Mid November hit Yamcha's city like a cloud of frostbite. Yamcha was glad his uniform for the cooler months of the season was warm, because after a grueling last practise for the season, he didn't exactly want to be doing much more than going home and having a nice long shower.

The second he got to his door, however, he knew instantly there was someone else inside. Strangely, the energy was familiar… had one of his friends dropped by for a visit? He didn't exactly mind, but a heads up would've been nice.

He opened the door and was greeted by a frazzled Puar, along with the smiling face of someone he did NOT expect to see lounging on his couch.

"Frieza!"

"Nice house, Yamcha~"

He quickly closed the door and looked like he was about to run in the other direction, simply from shock. How the heck did Frieza get to Earth, and how did he get in his house?! He supposed Puar answered the door, now that he thought of it.

"I'm so sorry, Yamcha, he insisted," Puar tried to explain, but Yamcha merely chuckled nervously, "it's alright, Puar." At least Frieza had come here peacefully this time.

"I didn't realise your planet got so ridiculously cold," the icejin certainly LOOKED cold, come to think of it, and Yamcha realised that the last times Frieza had come had been during the warmer months. Not to mention he had returned to a different form, Yamcha noted. He certainly looked very different than the last time they met. If he was correct, this was his first form? At least that's what the others told him.

"Well, it is Autumn," he quickly put the heater on, and grabbed a blanket from the couch to hand to his visitor, "here, I'll make us something hot to drink."

"Much appreciated," Frieza wrapped himself up in the blanket, and it was only then that Yamcha noticed the necklace he had given the tyrant was glittering around his neck. He was honestly surprised to see Frieza still wearing it, and it made his cheeks hot. He honestly didn't think that he would wear it more than the day he had given it to him.

The kettle whistled as it finished boiling, and Yamcha poured out some green tea for them both. He liked to drink it after a hard day of practise, "soo, what brings you to Earth?"

Frieza took the drink with curiosity, and took a sip. It was bitter, but not unpleasant, and it warmed him up, which he was pleased about. He glanced at the human as he sat down on the L shaped couch, and smirked a little, "thank you. I was visiting to invite you to come with me on a trip, actually."

"A trip? With me?" To say he was surprised was an understatement. After all, he wasn't expecting to see the icejin again, not unless it was from the other side of the battlefield. Just because Frieza had helped them once, didn't mean he'd make a habit of it, after all. But it seemed as though his visitor's intentions were benign.

"You DID tell me that you don't, how shall we say, explore many planets," Frieza waved his hand, "it seems that I'm suffering from a terrible case of -boredom- these days."

Boredom huh? Yamcha supposed that was inevitable. With him being on a leash from Lord Beerus, and not able to do much as a result, the human was just glad the tyrant hadn't gone completely insane and tried to go back to his old ways regardless of the threat from a God.

Maybe if he came along, he could help keep Frieza entertained and free from trouble? He figured his friends would understand… maybe.

"I don't mind," Yamcha smiled, and nodded to Puar, who also seemed to be on the same wavelength that his human friend was thinking on, "the baseball season is over for a few months. I wouldn't mind travelling with you."

"Oh, well isn't that lucky~" the human got a sneaking suspicion that anything other than an agreement would end with rubble, but luckily for him, he wouldn't be needed for a while on Earth at least. Frieza sipped more of his tea and then set the cup down, "so, shall we go now then?"

"Oh, well, if we're going to be gone for a while, I should pack some things," Yamcha stood up and smiled at Puar, "hold down the fort while I'm gone?"

"Sure, but I'm not in charge of letting people know!" the cat might not've objected to the odd friendship before him, but to hell if he was going to be in charge of telling everyone that Yamcha was off in space with their former enemy!

"Fine, fine," Yamcha waved and smiled at Frieza, "feel free to relax while I get ready, then."

Frieza watched as Yamcha left, then turned back to the floating cat with a smirk, "so, feline, you're not going to come into space?"

"N-no," Puar did not want to be around Frieza more than he had to, "and you'd better look after Yamcha!"

"Oho, making demands of me, how brave of you," Frieza snickered, "but I doubt you could do much damage to me~"

"No, but I know who can!" the feline responded, raising his arms in a fighting pose.

"Ugh," the space emperor folded his arms in annoyance. He wanted to kill the little cat in front of him, but he supposed that wouldn't fly very well with the human, but what to do with this inputent brat-

"Look, I'm… I'm not asking for the first class ride or anything," Puar continued, looking awkward, as Frieza boredly looked in his direction, "just don't let him die."

"Uuuuugh," Frieza's head flopped back against the couch. This is what he hated about 'good guys'. Really, the speeches alone were half of the reason he blew them up. "Fine, you annoying simpleton. Now leave me be."

Puar took the hint not to press the issue, and flew after his human companion.

* * *

"Are you really sure about this, Yamcha?"

Said human was putting a few toiletries together, since he figured that Frieza probably wouldn't have things fit for humans on it. At the very least, he doubted that his strange friend needed to shave.

Did his race even grow hair? He doubted it.

As he finished packing some clothes, he noticed that Puar had put in his fighting gi, and wondered why. He didn't protest, however, and merely shrugged at the question offered his way.

"You and I both know I don't have a great deal of ties to Earth to keep me bound here all the time, except you of course," he patted the feline's head, which made him smile, "besides, the worst that could happen is that I die… again."

"Do you have to say that so casually?" Puar sighed, even if he knew it as the truth.

"I'll be fine," Yamcha didn't think that Frieza would come all the way to Earth just to invite him into space, and then killing him. That would be pretty strange and an awful waste of his time, in his opinion.

"If you say so…" the cat huffed as Yamcha slung the bag over his shoulder, and went back into the lounge room where Frieza was waiting.

"See you later, Puar!"

The blue cat could only hope this was a good idea.

* * *

"I'll never get tired of seeing Earth like this."

It wasn't Yamcha's first time on a spaceship, but it WAS the first time he could really appreciate the majesty of his home planet as they moved away from it.

Boarding the main ship had been a strange affair. Being greeted by Frieza's soldiers and not being shot at? It was weird to say the least.

Not to mention… he turned to Frieza himself, who was watching the shrinking planet as they left the solar system, he knew that he was smart, but seeing him flawlessly fly a space pod straight up to his mother ship with extreme ease. Humans on earth had to train for years in order to be able to do it, and yet here he was doing it with obvious proficiency.

Part of him wondered just how old he was. Maybe one day he'd gather up the courage to ask.

"Perhaps the allure of seeing planets like this wears off on you after a while," Frieza responded simply, then gestured for Yamcha to follow him, "come with me. I'm sure one of my men will show you around at some point, but for now, I'll show you where your room is."

"Wow, thank you!" He grinned brightly, "is your room near mine?"

"Ohoho~" a shit eating grin appeared on the icejin's face, "what are you trying to ask me, dear Yamcha~?"

The implications hit home, and the human's face went bright red, "wh-well- I DIDN'T MEAN THAT!"

Frieza could only snicker at the human's flustered expression and stuttered excuses.

Yes. This would do well to cure his boredom, he thought to himself, as his ship went far from the Solar System, and onwards to the neighbouring galaxies.


	6. Telekinesis

Frieza's men mostly left Yamcha alone, mostly, he assumed, because they had been ordered to. Some shot the human confused, curious looks. Others didn't look so happy with him being there. If anything, some even looked jealous.

Maybe the human was oblivious, but he didn't think they had anything specifically to be jealous about. Puar would probably disagree.

For the most part, Yamcha mostly spent his time looking out the windows at the amazing view. Frieza found it rather amusing, and would often come by just to have a giggle at him, though for the most part, the pair just talked.

One day, however, when they were passing by the Horsehead Nebula, Yamcha went to find Frieza and found him in the training room. It was a place he often used to keep in shape, but he had never seen the icejin in there once. It seemed as though instead of training his body, he was training his mind, as he sat in the air with things floating all around him, a subtle aura of energy in the room as he sat there.

Yamcha was careful as he came in and closed the door, but the sound made the icejin open his eyes and peer at him. He was about to apologise, but Frieza didn't seem bothered by the interruption. Everything around him floated back down to the around along with the tyrant as he landed with subtle grace.

"What brings you in here?"

The human snapped out of the trance he had been in, it seemed, and chuckled some, "oh, sorry for the interruption. I came in here to do my usual exercises. You know, to stay in shape."

"Huh…" that was not a concept that Frieza really needed to worry about, and it seemed as though Yamcha was curious about that himself.

"So… you don't ever need to do that? Fitness train?" He wasn't blind. Frieza didn't have an ounce of fat on him, his whole body was slender but covered in muscle. But he didn't need to train himself? At all? Yamcha honestly was a little jealous if it were true.

"No," the icejin shook his head, "I've never needed to train, except to obtain my Golden Form, but I suppose one habit I picked up from Earth's hell is meditation," he huffed, keeping himself composed, but inwardly the mere thought of that place, and the effort he had put into obtaining his new evolution really did piss him off.

"That's amazing," Yamcha's enthusiasm caught him off guard, and chased away his anger from the thoughts of Earth's Hell and the associated memories that came with it, "man… never needing to train to keep yourself in shape? I'd love that, really."

"Hm," Frieza swirled his tail in a slow curling motion - Yamcha now knew that was a sign of the icejin being pleased. The human had no idea how cathartic the human was to his temper - and he decided that he would keep that to himself for now. He just seemed to have a way to mute his internal anger very easily - part of the reason he liked his company.

"Well then, what kind of training do you normally do? Show me."

And so, Yamcha did. The icejin mostly watched him silently, observing with only his tail moving behind him. Still happy - good to know.

About half an hour later was when the human finished up, wiping his brow, "phew. That was a good workout."

"Hmmm~" swish, swish, and a grin, "nice."

"Were you just-"

"That's just cute~"

Yamcha's face went red again as Frieza merely giggled at him, clearly highly amused at the human's innocence and obliviousness to the icejin obviously watching him work out.

"Fair game, Yamcha. You watched me~" That was true enough… but still. He pouted a bit, which only made the tyrant snicker some more.

"Speaking of that…" Frieza blinked as Yamcha looked hesitant, "I was wondering - I've always wanted to learn Telekinesis. Do… well, do you mind teaching me?"

"Oh?" That wasn't a request he was expecting, not to mention he wasn't exactly 'teacher' material. Surely Yamcha knew that, and yet he was requesting it anyway.

"I don't know if my particular talents would transfer over to you, but I suppose there's no harm in trying," there was really nothing better to do, and who knew? Maybe it'd be entertaining to watch the human try and learn a skill he knew from birth.

"Wow, really? Thanks!"

"That's nauseating,"

"Ahaha… right."

* * *

The sat indian style facing one another on some of the training mats on the other side of the room. Frieza placed some small objects down between the pair of them, including a weight brick, a mug, and a towel, then turned to his impromptu 'student'. Inwardly, he had his reasons for teaching Yamcha a thing or two - though for the time being, he kept those reasons very much to himself. For now, he would continue to have fun with the earthling in front of him and tolerate just a little bit of leniency…

"Listen closely, because I will only explain this once," Frieza instructed, and Yamcha nodded, giving him his undivided attention, "you already know how to manipulate ki, so using Telekinesis as a means of moving an object, or talking to another person, follows a similar principal. You need to flow your ki around the object in question to move it. We'll discuss talking once you've mastered that."

"Right," Yamcha nodded, and closed his eyes. It didn't take long to tap into his ki, and a white aura surrounded him. Now… how to move his ki onto the objects in front of him. It wasn't as easy as Frieza made it sound, but he didn't expect it to be.

Meanwhile, the icejin merely watched, his arms folded, as he saw the human's ki appear. For the longest time, he thought that learning to sense it would be a waste of time, but now that he could begin to feel energy… he blinked and began to focus on Yamcha's power. It was far smaller than his own, of course, but it was vibrant, pulsing and warm. It was different from the saiyan power, which was wild and coursing, or his own, which was stark and cold. It was an odd combination, him and this human, but he found himself not particularly bothered by it. Despite his species sake - icejins liked the heat.

He grinned a little, and continued to watch.

'This is hard, but I think I've got it…' a bead of sweat ran down Yamcha's brow as he focused on the cup. Slowly but surely, he felt his ki circle around the ceramic, and shortly after, he forced the object off the ground and into the air. It was only after a moment that he dared to open his eyes…

A bright smile filled his face as he looked at the hovering cup, "I did it!"

Frieza nodded, a small smile on his own face, "you're a quick learner."

"At least that's one of my good traits," he concentrated to move the cup around some more, to get the hang of it, "I tried learning how to do this in the past, but the way it was done by others wasn't really a trick I could learn."

"Hmph, can't be many good teachers among your team," Frieza huffed. Yamcha loathe to admit he somewhat had a point. Except for Roshi.

He managed to hover the cup over to Frieza, who blinked and held out his hands. He placed the cup in the icejin's hands, which made the tyrant smirk. To play along, he effortlessly hovered the cup right back to Yamcha's own hands.

"In any case, practise that. Once you've mastered it, we can move on to spoken words." With that, Frieza stood up and flew over to one of the windows as Yamcha trained.

Truth be told, having a human around on his ship had caused some contention among his staff. A sharp look was all it took to silence them, but he wasn't blind. He knew Yamcha had been in some fights. It made him smirk that the human had beaten them, but also a bit annoyed. His soldiers were fairly weak… that, or Yamcha had powered up a great deal from the last time he had been in battle.

Maybe he was hiding more laten strength than he even knew himself. After all, he had picked up Telekinesis rather easily.

Not that it was a hard technique, in his opinion.

But as he watched outside, a planet was coming into view. It was one of the new ones which had shown up after the wish on the dragon balls, and it had an environment similar to Earth in that it was capable of supporting life - who knew, there might be some minerals there for later exploration.

Time to take a space walk.

* * *

The planet turned out to be primitive in nature in terms of its native life forms. But the planet was very rich in resources, Frieza quickly discovered, when he found a lump of gold simply lying on the surface. Yamcha nabbed it, sheepishly explaining that he could make some decent money at home for it.

Frieza thought that was hilarious - maybe he'd make a decent space pirate after all.

But the one thing Yamcha was gaining from his trip into space, and something he sorely needed, was a boost in self confidence. It wasn't just specifically from Frieza himself (though having him around and not out for his blood was certainly a bonus, as well as agreeing to train him, and even take an interest in him) but the fact that he gained the respect among Frieza's men by outclassing them in battle. It was something he somewhat lacked nowadays among the fighters on Earth.

Well, except for Tien, but even he had been at the Universal survival tournament whereas he had not.

"How droll, I'm tempted to blow this planet up," Frieza huffed, but Yamcha folded his arms, "please don't do that."

"Why not~?" the icejin had to tease, "this planet is boring."

"Still," the human really hoped that he was joking.

"You're so easy to goad~" he walked back over towards his spaceship, "I think I've 'explored' this planet enough. It will be good for resources in time."

"You're not going to strip it bare, I hope."

"Maaaaaaaaybe~"

The playful banter continued as they headed back into the ship.


	7. Fight

Despite Frieza and himself getting along swimmingly for the time being, Yamcha was of the opinion that the reason for that for the most part was due to the fact that the tyrant had not yet done anything of a horrible nature in his presence. This included blowing up planets or destroying his own soldiers because he grew annoyed with them. The human had yet to see this behavior, either because Frieza simply didn't feel like it at the moment, or his leash from Beerus was lorded over him more than he liked, or he simply realised that he did not have as many under his rule as he once did. Maybe he was merely conserving lives because it was to his benefit.

But Yamcha knew that, even if they were friends, it didn't change the fact that at his core, Frieza was an evil being with very twisted preferences on what he enjoyed. The human was no fool, and he knew that eventually, there would be clashes between himself and the tyrant.

He thought he was prepared for it, he really did, but nothing could've prepared him for when it really did happen, nor the lengths he would need to go to protect his own life.

He really should've seen it coming…

* * *

A slip in the hallway started it all.

The soldier hadn't meant to, of course. He had simply been taking some important documents somewhere, and down he fell. But in the process, he had shattered one of the datapads containing some information, which pissed Frieza off instantly. Yamcha knew that his type hated incompetence… but the mere idea of the soldier being killed off just for a fall had not sat well with him.

And so, they argued.

"You shouldn't just kill someone over a trivial mistake like that!" Yamcha had protested.

"Don't tell me how to run my empire, human," Frieza had all but hissed back.

Said human knew he was in trouble, but if there was anything he had gained from this trip… it had been his lingering self confidence. Frieza had unconsciously boosted him up, and he wasn't going to change that just because the icejin was now angry.

"I'm not, but I am telling you to show your soldiers some mercy,"

The tyrant growled, "I'm not the merciful type, Yamcha. Surely you knew that about me by now."

"Maybe so, but there's such thing as being merciful for your own benefit, and I think this is one of those times," he tried to reason, "think about it - how many men do you have working for you now? Twenty? Thirty? Can you really afford to just kill one over a trivial mistake?"

"So what if I do?" the icejin thrust his hand out from his side, "I didn't bring you on here to question how I run things!"

"Yeah, so why did you bring me here?" Yamcha folded his arms defiantly. Inwardly he was shaking, but he knew he had to stick to his guns. "You know that eventually, I wouldn't have liked this."

"Maybe, but I wouldn't have thought you'd have the guts to question it," Frieza huffed, a smirk on his face. The soldiers took the opportunity to back away from the two arguing.

"So you saw me as a coward?!"

"You were practically quaking in your boots the night we met - how could I not think of you as a coward?"

Yamcha supposed he had a point, but that didn't deter him, "then if I'm so cowardly, why am I here?"

He asked it again, and it made Frieza pause. Why was he here? He couldn't just say it was because he liked the company. It was unbefitting of him… but it was the actual truth. Not to mention… the metal of the necklace around his neck glittered in the corner of his eye.

But Yamcha couldn't know about that. Not yet.

"You're here because I let you come," the tyrant all but snarled, "and I can easily kill you just as easily as I could kill them!"

"Of course you can," Yamcha had never denied it, "but before you even think about it? I'll message King Kai, who will message Lord Beerus, who will then come and kill you before you so much as raise your hand."

It was a strong threat, and yet, a true one. He had since learned how to use Telekinesis, and he already knew how to get in touch with King Kai from his time with the Kai on his world. He also knew that King Kai wouldn't hesitate to let Lord Beerus know (who made no secret of not liking Frieza at all) and he knew that it wouldn't be long before the feline killed Frieza just because he could.

Frieza looked pissed at the remark, but he couldn't deny it was fact. Yamcha was terrified, but he kept his face straight, and stared straight at the other beings angry red eyes. He had probably stepped way out of line, he had probably signed a death warrant.

"You dare to threaten me?"

"You threatened me first," he was quick to point out.

With that, the icejin merely snarled and whipped around, his tail smacking Yamcha hard across the face. Whether it was on purpose or not didn't matter, as the human yelped in pain from the blow. He rubbed his cheek as the icejin stalked away, but what mattered was that he was alive.

And he stood up for himself.

* * *

Yamcha mostly stuck to his room after that. He may have stood up for himself, but he was still on Frieza's ship in the middle of space. He knew if he really wanted to, he could have Goku fetch him and take him straight home, and he knew that the kind saiyan would understand why he wanted to at least try to be friends with the space Emperor. He knew that Goku had given him chances too, after all.

The human sighed as he fixed up the nasty cut on his cheek. That was going to bruise and he knew it, but he wondered if he had gone too far to protect a soldier. Yamcha knew that he had done the right thing, but had he permanently screwed up his friendship? He really didn't know. The human was only beginning to understand the icejin's body language and his overall personality.

He knew that Frieza was not a good person.

He also knew that Frieza had helped save the entire Universe.

But he also knew that Frieza wanted to become a god and rule over said Universe he saved. He was ambitious, and wanted what he saw as his rightful place at the very top of the ladder.

So then, where did he come into this? It was clear to him that his friendship meant something to the tyrant, but what exactly did that really mean? Was he just an entertaining plaything for now?

Yamcha sighed as he flopped on his bed. Dealing with this alone was hard, but contacting anyone else wasn't something he thought he could do. They would all blast him, or blame him, for trusting Frieza in the first place.

Did he trust him? Not really, truth be told.

He trusted Frieza not to kill him if he continued to deliver praise to the tyrant, but he didn't trust Frieza to keep him alive. He was not a fool.

He wasn't sure what to do, and it was with that thought that he got ready to sleep, and drift into an uneasy slumber.

* * *

Yamcha woke up with a start to something pinching his nose.

The human yelped and slapped away whatever was doing that and turned the light on to find Frieza sitting on the side of his bed, his hand in the air from where he had clearly pinched Yamcha's nose. He figured it was to wake him, but really?

"You can shake my shoulder next time, you know!" he almost whined as he rubbed his face, the argument from the previous day not on his mind for the moment as he chased the cobwebs out of his mind, but the icejin's cold expression and soft growl brought it right back to mind.

"Uuuuuhh…" what exactly did he say.

"You do realise the only reason you continue to breathe is that I find you entertaining, right?" Frieza offered, his tone icy.

Yamcha figured that was probably the case, but even so… "that… doesn't add up."

"Pardon me?"

"Look," the human rubbed his forehead as he sat up to talk better, "you came to Earth in secret specifically to invite me on a space trip, and then turn around to just threaten to kill me the second I piss you off? I might not be the smartest person in this room, but I know for a fact that that is strange. Not to mention a waste of your time."

Yamcha had a point, and a compliment. How annoying. Frieza folded his arms with a huff, "so you're not so mundane as I might've thought, hm."

The unspoken words in the room, though, begged to be said, and it was clear that the tyrant was still agitated. His tail was completely still, whereas Yamcha had noticed he usually slammed it on the ground and went still whenever he was mad.

"You had a point," Frieza sighed, "however," his sharp gaze pierced holes through his head, and Yamcha had the gall to look scared for a moment, "I'm not so keen on such things happening again. I don't particularly fancy an army that thinks they can revolt the second they hear Beerus's name."

That… was a good point, but on the other hand, "truthfully, Frieza… I think Lord Beerus would only ever respond to someone from Earth, or one who fought for him in the tournament, rather than just one of your soldiers…"

That was how it seemed to him, anyway.

"Hm. Good point," the icejin swished his tail, and then moved closer. Yamcha moved backwards a little on impulse, but soon stopped as Frieza reached up to touch the mark he had left there from his tail.

"Looks like you had a disagreement with my tail," he offered with a smirk.

"U-um…" Frieza was awfully close - he could detect a faint hint of his scent. It was a slight flowery smell of soap, but also something spicy and smokey… "maybe we could… make amends?"

"Hmmmm~" the tyrant had to smirk a little, "I think I would like that. How do you propose we do that?"

Said tail was curling as it flicked a little - looks like the Emperor felt better, "don't kill any soldiers for minor mistakes, and I won't say anything about Lord Beerus in front of your men?"

"I think that sounds like an even trade," Frieza let him go and leaned back with a satisfied smirk, "though, I must admit… it's been some time since someone has had the guts to stand up to me, knowing they were outclassed in power…"

"Well, that's what friends do," he offered with a shaky smile.

"Hm, I see~" the icejin stood up and went to leave without a further word. Yamcha had to stare at the door as he left, feeling like he had been through a hurricane and somehow survived with only minor damage.

There were many things puzzling him about not only their interaction just then, but also the fact that Frieza had even let him live.

What exactly was keeping him alive? It felt like more than a simple friendship. Frieza wasn't the kind of person to treasure such things.

So, why? The question burned him up, but he doubted he'd get any answers anytime soon.

All he could do was wait.


	8. Bath

The unpleasantness of the fight eventually flowed away into nothing. Neither forgot it, but both learned from it. They had both began bonding more by talking about Frieza's actual work, which were now underway with him getting a schedule from Whis. The Supreme Kai had been very busy bringing many worlds back to life, which in turn meant that it was almost time for the icejin to begin activities himself.

Since then, Frieza had shown surprising restraint when it came to his soldiers. While he was still as ruthless as ever, the icejin at least allowed them to live if they made mistakes. Yamcha had a very good point - there were not many on the force anymore, and it was something that angered the emperor a lot.

But like always, Yamcha seemed to have a way to keep him calm. It was something said soldiers were starting to notice, and therefore, gave the human a wide berth to do whatever he wanted. They didn't know, nor understood, what was going on, but if their lives were safe because of this squishy fleshbag, then that was all that mattered.

It was a thought that also bothered Frieza more than he dared to let on… how weak Yamcha was on a physical level. He was so used to being nigh indestructible and a very hardy being (as well as not really caring about anyone else's health or wellbeing) that the idea of weakness was not often thought about.

But now…

The tyrant sighed. Why did he have to like that human.

* * *

Yamcha had to say, Frieza certainly enjoyed the finer things in life. He had been allowed to use the tyrant's own bathroom, which was very large just for one person, but he had to admit it was a luxury he could certainly get used to. The room had a standard station to shower himself, but also a hot pool much like the hot springs on Earth. Yamcha liked to come in here after a good training session, though in all the times he had been in here, it had been alone.

It didn't bother him. The human preferred his privacy - maybe because of the peace it brought, or just in general.

His thoughts wandered back to the icejin… and he felt his cheeks heat up a little. It had been a while since he had a quiet moment to contemplate his relationship with the… well, was he still a tyrant now? Yamcha supposed he was, to a degree. But even he had noticed the subtle changes ever since the Tournament of Power.

And he had to admit… he never thought himself to be attracted to anyone other than human woman, of whom he used to be terrified of, but now he knew the truth. It wasn't a matter of gender so much… he loved the idea of someone who had undeniable personal strength. He realised quickly it was what had attracted him to Bulma, and now… he smiled a little.

In his opinion, Frieza wasn't exactly ugly, especially in his true form. If anything, he was unexpectedly pretty for someone so evil. It always seemed to be the way - 17 and 18 were both attractive humans in their own right, too, and they had destroyed the planet in Trunks' timeline…

It was obvious that Frieza liked him well enough, but did he feel the same way? He knew it would take time to really build a strong attraction to someone he didn't entirely trust, but he could feel something there. Something budding into something stronger…

Yamcha decided he'd let things flow naturally. If something happened between them, well… all he knew right now was that he wasn't opposed to the idea.

That's when he heard the door open.

The human blinked and looked over when he saw the object of his thoughts walk in and- his eyes nearly popped out of his head as Frieza casually tossed his robe off and onto the hook nearby to hang it up.

He had never seen the emperor nude in his form before. His face went red.

Frieza either didn't notice his presence or chose to ignore it as he showered himself. Yamcha felt like a voyeur, but it seemed as though the icejin finished up rather quickly as he came over to where the path was, only to blink at the human.

With a sheepish giggle, Yamcha waved, "h-hi."

A slow smile curled on the Emperor's face as he tapped his chin with his left hand, "well hello there, enjoying the view are you?"

"Uuuummm…" if he said yes, would Frieza kill him? He had a feeling that wouldn't be the case. So, he answered honestly, "yes?"

"Ohoho~" the icejin certainly looked very pleased as he stepped into the pool, "aren't you just a flirt~" now the human knew Frieza was giving him a heated a look as he came right up to the human, who pressed himself against the wall, "you wouldn't have have been spying on me, were you?"

"N-n-not on purpose," oh jees he was very close. He could even see the pupils in Frieza's eyes, "you-you kind of just came in when I was in here!"

"Well, it is my bathroom," the icejin pointed out, and he reached up to flick Yamcha playfully on the nose before leaning back from the human, "besides, if I minded you being in here, I would've chased you out the second I came in the door."

"So you knew I was in here," Yamcha pouted a little bit, and Frieza snickered at him, "I've since mastered that ki sensing ability your kind seem to have, so yes, I knew you were in here even before I walked in~"

The human followed his arms, "so you came in here to perve on me?"

"So what if I did?" Frieza's tail made curls in the air behind him, and Yamcha had to blush at that, to which the icejin laughed again, "you're so easy to bait."

The human could only huffed as the icejin looped his arms over the edge of the bath, and leaned back into the water. It was the most relaxed he had ever seen the other male, though he suspected it was because he was finally on missions and able to exercise his own power and ambitions as he saw fit. While Yamcha hoped that he would never take over as God of the multiverse, he had a feeling that wouldn't be allowed to happen. Though, the thoughts left his mind as he was openly allowed to look at Frieza's exposed neck, adorned with the necklace he had given him, and the droplets of water on his body…

It certainly answered the question of attraction, which was a surefire yes now that he was able to openly gaze at the tyrant's body without the cumbersome armour covering it. It took him a moment to realise that Frieza had since met his gaze.

When Yamcha finally noticed, said icejin smirked at him, "having fun, are you?"

"I'm just thinking," the human KNEW his face was red. 'About the fact that you look hot right now.'

"Oh? What thoughts are swirling around in that handsome head of yours, hm?" Were those bedroom eyes Frieza was eyeing him with? Good lord.

"Honestly?" he offered as the icejin came back over to him, "you."

"Oh, well how flattering~" he seemed to tease. Frieza was close again, close enough to touch if he really wanted to, "the one thing I like more than anything is to be on someone's mind~"

Yamcha jumped a little as the icejin poked him gently in the chest with his fingertip. He only realised just then as he looked down that Frieza's nails were perfectly manicured - he obviously took very good care of himself.

The icejin walked his fingers up the human's chest, and then ran his index finger along the side of Yamcha's face. He smiled a little as his tail swished in the water…

For Frieza, this was an interesting development. He had never experienced any kind of attraction to another being, mostly because he had absolutely no need for attraction of any kind. His father had given both himself and his brother a well versed lesson when they were old enough… and he had told him that attraction was incredibly rare in their kind.

Who knew he would find someone to be attracted to in the form of this scraggly, scarred human?

He had appreciated the beauty of others before, every now and then, but this was the first time he had ever desired someone. Frieza wasn't sure how to feel about the fact that the one he desired was a human being, but as his father had so eloquently put, attraction wasn't something that anyone could control nor predict. But, more and more, he was growing not to mind it so much.

This, however… he felt hands on his back. They were trembling slightly, as if Yamcha wasn't sure if he should even be touching him, but the icejin leaned into it to show his acceptance of it. It strengthened their mutual resolve, and Frieza leaned forward a little more.

Their lips touched before either of them really processed what was happening, but for them both, it felt like the tension that had been in the room the second Frieza had walked in had snapped. Both were able to relax in each other's hold now that they knew the attraction was mutual.

It was a simple, chaste kiss, and they broke away a few moments later. The pair looked at one another for a moment, as if contemplating what they had just done and the barrier they had essentially knocked down.

"That was nice," Yamcha managed to say. It was all Frieza could do but nod in agreement. "U-um,"

The icejin raised his finger and pressed it against the human's lips to shush him. His mind was racing, as well, but he effectively derailed it by simply saying, "you need to go back to Earth soon, don't you?"

"Yeah…" the baseball season was going to start soon, and he needed to get home and start training for it.

"Well then," Frieza pulled away, and Yamcha let him do as much, "consider that a parting gift from me~"

"O-oh…" he honestly didn't think he'd be able to stop thinking about that 'parting gift' for a very long time. He kind of hoped that they would be able to do it again, but he knew better than to push his luck. Yamcha watched as Frieza got out of the bath and went to dry himself off. The human followed soon after, though he wondered…

"Will you come and visit sometime soon?"

The tyrant paused and glanced at Yamcha, thoughtful. Yes, he would like to visit the human again, if only to continue to dig deeper into these very curious thoughts and feelings he was having. Though, being on the same planet as those disgusting monkeys would not sit well with him… he would learn to deal with it.

Maybe.

"Perhaps," he grinned, and wrapped his robe around himself, "you will just have to wait and see."

So he would…


	9. Home

Arriving home in January felt strange, in many ways.

For starters, nearly all of his friends had wondered where the hell he had been, because contrary to what he had thought, they HAD noticed his energy leave the planet. It had taken some time to convince his friends that no, he had not been abducted and no, he was not suddenly a Galactic Patrolman or otherwise.

But the truth was something that he knew required a discussion. One he wasn't looking forward to.

"You were doing WHAT?!"

It was Bulma who had raised the question at their next get together, and Yamcha had to cringe at the screech. Jees, couldn't she keep her voice down?

"Are you NUTS?"

"The guy is pure evil!"

"I'm surprised you're still alive…"

"Guys, enough!" Yamcha snapped, and sighed as everyone went quiet, though the looks of indignation were enough to make him rub his forehead, "look, Frieza _invited_ me into space. He didn't even TRY to 'turn me evil' or any of that nonsense. We just… hung out."

"Hung out," Vegeta deadpanned.

"Hung out," Yamcha repeated, folding his arms, "that's it. And it was fun. I got to see a lot of space and planets I'd never been before. I even _stopped_ him from blowing up several of them, and killing his own soldiers."

"Hold on - you _stopped_ him from doing that?" Goku spoke up with some degree of surprise. After all, he didn't think it was even possible that Frieza could show _mercy._

"Quite an accomplishment, I have to say," Beerus swirled his drink as he peered over at the human with some degree of curiosity, "Frieza has always been uncompromising and rotten to the core, and yet _you_ managed to get him to back down? I see no problem with that, personally."

"Am I the only one who thinks that even _attempting_ to give that rotten bastard any chances is a bad idea?!" Bulma huffed, and Yamcha was tempted to snark right back about the fact that she _married Vegeta,_ but he refrained from doing so, for now.

"If Yamcha has a positive influence on Frieza, then it's for the good of us all," Whis was quick to point out, "due to Goku's promise to keep him alive after the tournament, there's only so much pressure we can put on him to keep him in line. But if Yamcha makes him naturally want to do his job better, then it's all the better for this Universe."

"I'm not blind, either," Beerus finished off his drink, "I know that he was trying to manipulate the Gods during the tournament, and wants the top job. He'll never _get_ it, of course, but if we can prevent Frieza from doing what he once did in the past, and if Yamcha is the one to do it? Then let him."

"Thank you, Lord Beerus," the human was relieved that a _God_ had his back.

Tien, on the other hand, was sitting by him, and as the conversation went back to normal, he spoke softly to his fellow human, "are you sure about this?"

Yamcha was glad to have another friend to talk to about this peacefully with, "can I tell you a secret?"

"Of course."

"I'm pretty sure Frieza likes me. You know. Like _really_ likes me."

Tien blinked, "and you know this how…?"

"Because he kissed me."

The triclops could only blink all three eyes at him in shock, "he… kissed you."

"Yep," he wasn't about to admit it had been very much mutual.

"Wow."

"Yeah."

Tien didn't really know how to process it. He was worried for Yamcha, as they all were, but it was clear that Frieza wasn't about to hurt him, and hopefully by extension, the Earth. He was probably being a touch too helpful, but somehow, there was something stronger about his best friend when he came back from his trip.

His ki pulsed brighter, like he had been training. He felt stronger, too, in both mind and spirit.

Had being around the icejin truly done him some _good?_ It boggled his mind.

"So what really went on up there in space?" Tien had to ask, "you're stronger, now. In many ways."

Yamcha had to smile a little. The banter… the conversations, the kiss… none of it had left his mind. But the most important thing he had gained while up there? Was self confidence.

And so, all he did was answer with a smile, "I made a friend."

* * *

Before he left space, Frieza had given him a communicator so they could keep in touch. He hadn't expected to get a call anytime soon, but two weeks after he had come back from space, the communicator buzzed as he got back from his training. He hurried over to it after dumping his training bag down and clicked the green button on it to bring up the holographic emitter.

"Hey Frieza!" Yamcha greeted with a smile, but blinked when he saw the icejin. He looked… ruffled? He was also back in his true form for some reason.

"Hello," the icejin was out of breath for some reason, "I have a favour to ask."

"O-of course, what's wrong?"

"I'd rather not discuss it," now that Frieza leaned back, he could see that he was in a full body suit rather than his usual attire, along with armour. He never wore armour in his true form… "would you mind if I visited your house for… about a week."

"Sure, I don't mind," the human's curiosity was growing, but Frieza had stated he didn't want to talk about it, so he respected his wishes, "I have plenty of room here if you need to rest."

"Thank you. Expect me in a few hours," the transmission ended after that.

Yamcha really did wonder what was wrong with the icejin, but he didn't have long to find out. In a few hours, there was a knock on his door, and he opened it to have Frieza practically land in his arms. He was indeed clothed in a black bodysuit with body armour much like Vegeta's on his body, and he looked _exhausted._

There was also a strange scent about him. It was subtle, but it smelt potent… "Frieza?"

"Do me a favour and don't ask me questions right now," was all that was said through ragged breaths, "I might kill you, and I don't want to do that."

"D-duly noted," Yamcha replied in turn, and quickly helped him inside out of the cold weather and into his warm house. Puar was around as well, but had wisely gone and hidden himself out of the way of the pair. The human was careful to lead him through the house and to his spare room, where he had a comfortable bed for guests set up. He helped Frieza get settled on it, and pulled the blankets over him.

"Are you sure you don't want to take your armour off?" he offered, but the icejin shook his head no and curled under the covers.

"Thank you," it was with that that Frieza promptly rolled over under the blankets and fell asleep.

What a bizarre turn of events… Yamcha knew he would need help with this situation, but talking to his friends was out of the question. Luckily, he knew one other that could help.

* * *

"He showed up and collapsed?"

Whis was enjoying his usual supply of food, with Beerus at his table as well. Yamcha was glad to find them alone - he didn't really want anyone to know that Frieza was on Earth, and he hoped the Gods would be amicable about it, especially as the icejin was working for Beerus at the moment.

"Hmmm…" the angel pondered that for a moment, "there is not a great deal known about the Icejin race. They are rare and elusive in both Universe 6 and this one. Lord Beerus, do you have any ideas?"

The cat god twirled his fork as he ate his plate of spaghetti. Yamcha would never understand how he and the saiyans could put away _so much food_ in one sitting. It almost made him nauseous just thinking about it.

"He wouldn't happen to have been wearing clothing when he showed up, was he?" Beerus asked, to which Yamcha blinked and nodded, "yeah, he was."

"Ah, that explains it," The god of destruction merely smirked, "he's not sick. He's just going through his reproduction cycle."

"His WHAT?!" the human turned red. Of all the things he expected Beerus to say, that was NOT one of them.

"Mm, I remember his father, King Cold, explained it to me once," Beerus leaned back in his chair as he picked something out of his teeth with a claw, "it's very rare when it happens, but their species goes through a specific time every few years where they're in a state to reproduce. They either go through with it, or ignore it. And if they ignore it, they simply need to sleep it off. They wear clothing to conceal their scent, which is far stronger while in this state."

"How very fascinating," Whis delicately ate his own plate of noodles, "really, the way mortal beings create new mortal beings will always be an interesting subject."

"Anyway, just let Frieza sleep it off and leave him alone for however long it takes him to get through his cycle," he yawned deeply, "it's time for me to sleep for quite some time, but I certainly enjoyed my final meal here on Earth for a few years. Take care of that pompous brat for me, okay?"

After all, said icejin would be doing the work of the gods for the foreseeable future.

"U-understood…"

"Oh, and Yamcha, was it?"

"Yes?"

Beerus smirked at him, "I suggest you refrain from trying to mate with him right now, unless you want a child."

Yamcha felt like his entire body went red, "W-WE'RE NOT LIKE THAT!"

"Suuure. Whis, let's go!"

And with that, the two Gods left their dining table, leaving a red faced human in their wake.

* * *

Yamcha did as he was told and left Frieza alone for the rest of the week. He left food out that he knew the icejin liked at night, and always found it gone by the morning, so he knew that he was eating, at least. But even with him in the house, he had to wonder why of all places, the icejin chose to visit _here_ instead of staying on his ship.

Was there someone bothering him? He didn't think so - if Frieza was that bothered, he would've killed them on the spot.

The whole thing was very strange. It was kind of like having a roommate that he never saw for an entire week.

Eventually, however, Yamcha came home from practise and found Frieza awake and drinking a mug of hot tea. He had changed out of his clothing, now, but was still in his true form as opposed to his first one. The human closed the door and put down his bag, as usual, and the icejin looked up at him, to which Yamcha smiled, "you're awake. Are you feeling better now?"

"Much," was the reply as Frieza sat down his tea, "thank you for letting me stay on such short notice."

"No problem," he wondered if the icejin would answer him now, "though…" he noticed the red eyes focused on him with stronger intensity than before, "can I ask _now_ why you came here like you did? I've never seen you tired before."

Frieza blinked, then looked away from the human. Yamcha could've sworn his cheeks were pink - it was much easier to tell when his skin was white, "I would still rather not discuss it, but since you were so gracious a host, I will simply tell you that it's just something that happens to me every few of your Earth years. That's all."

"Oh, I see…" well, it was worth asking, "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"I suppose," Frieza drank more of his tea as Yamcha went to put his bag away. He came back shortly afterwards and said, "you changed your form, too!"

"I'm considering a potential 'training' method, as much as I despise it," the icejin stood up, "this IS my true form, after all. I am learning to suppress my power within it rather than under the need for forms. It is more efficient should I ever have to face someone I don't particularly like."

Like the monkeys.

"I see," Yamcha smiled, "I think it's a wise choice to make, especially since you're going to be on Destroyer duty soon."

"Well, I can blow up a planet in my first form, you know~" Frieza wandered over and playfully flicked the human's nose, "though, I suppose you wouldn't know that, since you weren't on planet Namek."

That was true. The only time he had 'witnessed' such a thing was when he had apparently been blown up when Frieza showed up to invade the last time he was on Earth, but that had been reversed, so he only knew about it from hearsay of his friends.

"Your true form suits you," the human smiled, to which the icejin had to chuckle, "why, thank you," his tail made what Yamcha now called 'happy curls' in the air, "your compliments are always enjoyable, Yamcha."

"Ahaha…" well, he aimed to please. Frieza smiled a little, and then stepped away from the human, "well then, I will see you again at some point."

"I look forward to it!" Yamcha grinned as the icejin left, and then sighed deeply. He walked to the spare room where Frieza had stayed and found it clean, like the tyrant had never been there. But, there was a scent there that was unmistakable…

He wondered how badly Frieza would maim him if he learned that Yamcha knew the _real_ reason he was there.


	10. Messages

"He came to _you_ for help?"

Yamcha had taken some time away from his own home to help Tien out on his farm, as he often did whenever he had the time. Now that they had finished out in the fields, they were inside of his friend's house, with Chiaotzu there as well. He didn't mind the psychic hanging around to hear about his tale, as he trusted them both to keep it to themselves. They both lived the hermit lifestyle, after all, and they were his friends.

"Yeah, it sure was a wild week," while he supposed he trusted Frieza more than the rest of his friends, not that that was saying very much, considering no one except maybe Goku had any trust in the icejin.

"It was like having a cat, if a cat could kill you,"

"You basically had your own Lord Beerus in the house."

Yamcha had to laugh at that, "pretty much."

Tien brought over some senbei crackers and green tea to where Yamcha and Chiaotzu were sitting on the couch, and sat opposite him, where the group had a moment of quiet as they enjoyed the snacks.

"So what's the end game, here?" Tien asked eventually, and Yamcha blinked at him, "what do you mean?"

"Well, you said that Frieza likes you," he pointed out, "so, what about you? Do you like him?"

Yamcha didn't need to question that to himself. He already knew he liked Frieza, but confronting said feelings was another matter entirely. Over the past few weeks, he had shared a few more video calls with the former tyrant, mostly persuading him not to blow up planets with life on them, though how serious Frieza had been in the first place was questionable. If anything, it seemed like he was purposely trying to rile Yamcha up.

But he had enjoyed all of their calls… and the obvious flirting between the pair of them had not escaped the fighter's notice. Maybe he just liked the attention after having been the butt of jokes and the loveless life he had been leading as of late, but he dashed that thought. He knew it was more than that.

He genuinely liked Frieza, and so, he sighed and answered, "I think so."

"Hmm…" Tien always gave him honest answers. He had remained largely silent on Piccolo and Vegeta becoming part of the group, and then there was his own past to consider, too. He felt that he had no right to really judge others. But Frieza was another matter entirely - even the _gods_ didn't trust him, and that said a lot.

"You're going to have to be careful," his friend offered, "I don't know what you see in him, but I think that you have something good going on."

"Really?" Yamcha was surprised to hear that from his friend.

"Well, for one, Lord Beerus AND Whis both said that what you had going on was a good thing, and I'm inclined to trust the word of the gods," Tien shrugged, "but, however ludicrous it might be, you both are having a positive effect on one another. And frankly, that's all I really care about. That you're treated right."

"It would be a different story if he was hurting you," Chiaotzu spoke as he sipped his tea, "I mean, it's like with Krillin and 18. We had our doubts there too, right?"

"That's true…" he certainly did. Hadn't they all made fun of Krillin at first for falling for the android? But 18 had turned around and, along with her brother, became good people.

Yamcha didn't think that Frieza would ever become 'good' in the sense of the word… but he did know that there was a possibility that he could become 'better.' He was already showing signs of restraint, and being more playfully evil than actual evil.

Only time would tell.

"Besides, I'm sure if he hurt you, Lord Beerus would kill him," Tien shrugged nonchalantly, "I'm pretty sure he's just looking for an excuse to send him back to Earth's hell."

"That's true," Beerus made no secret of his utter contempt for the icejin, though he didn't seem to be bothered in giving advice to Yamcha about his behavior.

Such an odd God he was.

"I'll play it out," Yamcha decided with a smile, "who knows what will happen?"

Tien and Chiaotzu could only hope for a good outcome. For Yamcha's sake.

* * *

The weather warmed up as the baseball season began. The ex-fighter became very busy with his game, and the season started off without a hitch. He was well known to be one of the best pitchers the game had ever seen, though no one knew about his ki control abilities giving him the edge on competition. It was kind of cheating, so Yamcha only used it when he absolutely had to. The surprise on his opponents face never got old, though, when the ball moved on its own to hit them out.

The match ended with his team victorious on a warm spring day. Yamcha was feeling damn good that night as he came back to his humble abode, but a quick look at his communicator showed the light flashing.

A message? He went over to check it. He pressed the button on the communicator and sat down, only to be greeted with a closeup of Frieza's eye.

 _"Is this stupid thing even working?"_ he could hear him grumbling, only for his head to turn as one of his tech support explained that it had gone to message bank. _"Leave a message? Feh. Fine."_

Frieza leaned back in his chair. He was wearing the cape that Beerus had given him, and now that he wasn't wearing his fancy suit, the purple of it contrasted very nicely with the bright white of the icejin's skin, as well as complimented the purple jewels on his body.

Yamcha thought he looked gorgeous.

After Frieza had obviously shooed his support staff out of his room, he turned back to the screen as the Frieza on the screen sighed, _"well, I suppose you're out playing your silly game right now, but at least it's lucrative enough for you to have a decent abode. Alas, too bad you couldn't be here on the ship with me, making a living blowing up planets~"_

Yamcha had to snicker at that.

 _"Let's see…"_ Frieza crossed his legs and folded his arms behind his head, _"I've destroyed two dead planets. I do always enjoy the fireworks of it, but it's kind of boring without the frightened screams of the inhabitants… aaah. I miss the old days."_

Yamcha was glad that this was a recording. He could only feel very sheepish about Frieza's unhidden sadism. He made no secret of it, and he had to wonder what that meant for him in the future.

 _"Ah well. I suppose you could say things are 'well' here, my dear human,"_ the icejin winked at the camera, and the human could feel a blush on his face, _"do give me a call~"_

The transmission ended, and Yamcha could only chuckle to himself. He really did love the way Frieza could banter when he was in a good mood… so with a smile, he decided to call back.

The call, however, rang out, and it was Yamcha's turn to leave a message. When the recording began, he blinked, and then laughed a little, "I guess it's my turn now, huh?"

"I just got home from a game. We won," he grinned, "landslide victory! Pretty cool, huh?"

He settled back in his couch and smirked a little, "it sounds like you're having fun with your work. I'm glad. Though, if you're trying to get a reaction out of me in regards to destroying populations, I must say, you're giving me a real good reason to take another space holiday!"

Something he truthfully wouldn't mind doing in the slightest.

"But if you want to…" he scratched his cheek, "next week is a pretty big game here. Would you like to come and watch me play? It's on Saturday at 2pm, at the Baseball stadium near my house. I'll send you a map - you can't miss it. I'll even get you a uniform to wear, if you'd like? Fans often do that… if you like that kind of thing, that is. I'll have the Galactic Post mail you one?"

Maybe it'd be a nice present.

"I hope you're having a good time with your new role," he said that sincerely, "this all can't be easy for you, and… I really hope you're happy out there."

With a smile and a wave, he ended the transmission.

* * *

As promised, Yamcha sent a uniform to Frieza via the galactic post, just because he could. He didn't know if the icejin would even like it, let alone show up to the next game, but the human decided he didn't care.

If he didn't take chances with this relationship, friendship or otherwise, it would go nowhere without it.

He didn't receive another transmission after the one he left, but the next game rolled around, and he had all but put it out of his mind. Yamcha had a game to focus on winning, and boy oh boy would he. He worked hard all match, putting on his best ever game, by throwing ball after ball with as much power as he could, which, given his mastery of ki, was far stronger than the average human.

They beat the other team by a landslide, and it was only when Yamcha sighed and wiped his brow did he look up into the stands and notice a very familiar tailed figure sitting in the stands, well away from anyone else. He had not noticed his presence because of his concealed ki, and that he was dressed in the very uniform that Yamcha had sent.

He could practically feel his ears burning before being distracted by his team congratulating him on the fantastic pitches, to which he did his duty in greeting everyone and thanking them. It didn't take him long to realise that Frieza had made his way onto the field, though he was leaning against the barrier with a clear smirk on his face.

Yamcha soon went over to his wayward companion after his team continued to celebrate, and he waved in greeting, "I was hoping you would visit."

"Well, _someone_ had to make this stupid uniform of yours look good~" Frieza waved off with a grin, "I got your message, and decided to make an appearance~"

"I'm glad you did!" Yamcha grinned, "the uniform suits you, you know."

"But of course," the icejin smirked, "did you expect it not to?"

"Quite the contrary, I was hoping you'd wear it."

"Oho~" Frieza raised his right hand to chuckle some more, "you certainly know how to flatter me, my dear human."

"Though…" he moved his hand and poked Yamcha on the chest, "don't think I didn't notice you using your ki with those pitches, you naughty cheater~"

"It's not cheating if they don't know about it, right?" the human winked, and for the first time, Frieza laughed out of pure humour. He had heard him chuckle and giggle, and of course his evil laughs, but this one was completely different. It caught him by surprise, but all he could do was smile and chuckle himself.

He never thought he would hear Frieza laugh for real.

"Oh my, aren't you after my heart?" the icejin swirled his tail in the air and folded his arms behind his back, "I must admit, I didn't expect to enjoy watching this game, but it was a nice break from all of my duties of ruling the Universe~"

Yamcha knew he was joking, thankfully, and chuckled in response, "are you going to go now?"

"I think so. Although…" Frieza seemed thoughtful for a moment, as if contemplating a decision, but after a couple of seconds of that playful, red gaze, he floated up and pecked Yamcha on the cheek, "good job~"

With that, he flew off, to the surprise of everyone, leaving a stunned human behind.


	11. Longing

Frieza had never been one to turn down a gift, even if that gift was something so ludicrous as a _baseball outfit_ from his human friend. He had to admit, when he tried it on the first time, he felt rather silly. But in hindsight, the look on Yamcha's face when he had finished his game and spotted him had honestly been worth it. Even now, he supposed wearing the outfit wasn't _so_ bad.

Once he returned to space, he had put the outfit away for 'another day', along with his other clothing, as small as the selection was. Maybe if he ever went to Earth again, he'd get some more clothing?

Maybe.

With a sigh, the icejin flopped rather unceremoniously face first onto his bed.

He thought he had been prepared for anything and everything in life. As a prince, he knew very well that his royal duties included many things, so he had been trained as much. Edicate, finances, everything… the life of royalty was one he had lived for decades.

But now… he thought about it honestly to himself. The last of his race he remembered encountering that wasn't a family relation had been Frost, and that _maggot_ had barely been worthy of his attention, let alone anything else. He had hated the sight of him the second he laid eyes on the blue icejin, and it had felt _so good_ to blow him out of the arena in the Tournament of Power, and even better when he got erased by Zeno.

Was he really the last of his race? He blinked and brought his hand up to his face, then clenched his fist.

It looked like he was. Did it matter?

Maybe.

If he was the last icejin, and yet the best of them, then what did that really mean for him? Should he continue to be the last of his kind until he met his inevitable end? Wish for immortality, and continue to be the only one that ever lived until the end of time?

It had been the original plan, along with usurping those ridiculous God children, when he found out about them. His father had never let him in on that little titbit of information… assuming he had even known.

And yet… he rolled over and looked up at the ceiling, part of him… the part of him that was growing larger every day, just wanted to go to Earth and hang around with that silly, handsome human.

Ridiculous.

He slammed his fist into the mattress at the conflicting feelings in his mind. Honestly, what kind of tyrant was he, wanting to go see some useless human playing his stupid game and hanging around with his ridiculous flying feline?

And why… he grit his teeth at the thought… why did it make him feel _good_ to see him?

Why did he like leaving messages on his machine about his day to the human?

Why did he even like talking to the damned mammal?!

The whole thing infuriated Frieza beyond belief. It was made even more apparent when he had gone into his reproductive cycle, and the only place he could think of going was straight to that human's house to sleep it off.

Being on his ship, constantly surrounded by his soldiers, had set every single one of his sensors on edge to the point he blew a hole in the wall and nearly killed about 10 of them from space's vacuum. It had been then that he had left for Earth and spent the week at Yamcha's house.

It had been… uncomfortable, but bearable, at the human's abode. His bed was comfortable, and he had been left very nice food every night. Most importantly, he had been given complete and utter privacy, even left on his own in the house most days as Yamcha did whatever it was that Yamcha did.

He owed the human for that.

His fingertips touched his own lips - he had initiated a kiss with the human twice now, although the second had merely been a goodbye one. He could say the first had been the same… but he knew it had been different. His fingers drifted down to the necklace that was now always on his person, and he traced the metal.

He had accepted it.

Frieza knew what that meant.

Yamcha did not.

He blinked, and sighed deeply once more. Truth be told, the meaning of the gift could easily be forfeit since Yamcha was neither a prince nor an icejin who knew the significance behind giving someone like him a handcrafted ornament to wear. He knew that, but every time he looked at it, at the beautiful, shining metal, he could not look past that the meaning to _him_ was obvious.

He couldn't hide the fact that he liked the human more than he really wanted to think about.

And he knew that the feeling was very much mutual. In fact, he knew that if he went to Earth right now and pounced on the human, it was very likely they would end up in bed together without too much protest on either of their behalfs.

The mere thought made Frieza's face warm, and he quickly shook his head to chase the thoughts away.

He refused to think about that. Stupid leftover hormones from his cycle… yeah that was why he was thinking like this...

He was glad it would be several years before he had to deal with _that_ again.

Frieza didn't want to deal with it. He never liked dealing with it. It always made him extremely irritable, _and_ he stunk during it. The icejin prided himself on hygiene, dammit.

He heard his communicator buzz, and he growled. Frieza shoved a pillow over his head as the call went to voicemail, but luckily it was not the person who was constantly on his mind.

 _"Lord Frieza, I have a message from Planet Salovia. Apparently, they have-"_

Frieza picked it up, "apologies. I'm here. Go on,"

 _"Ahem, yes, as I was saying,"_ the soldier continued, _"Planet Salovia is currently undergoing growth of its natural inhabitants. Many animals have begun to spring up, no doubt from the Kai's doing. If you wish to take advantage of the resources, now would be the best time."_

The icejin nodded, "very well. Proceed as planned."

 _"Understood, Lord Frieza!"_

The call ended, and he sighed once more as he stood from his desk. Maybe he should just… not see Yamcha anymore.

Even as he thought it, a pang shot through his chest, which he ignored.

He didn't want to deal with it anymore.

* * *

It took a month of ignoring his communicator before Frieza realised he had a message from Whis. He opened it and listened to the message from the angel, who merely explained that he would not need to destroy any further planets for the year, and to take a break from destroyer duty. He had destroyed seven dead planets over the time he had taken the Destroyer's place, all for the sake of creating new ones.

It didn't improve his mood at all, which had been pretty bad for the last month. It seemed as though Yamcha had gotten the silent hint to leave him alone, though it could simply be that the human was busy. He wasn't sure what pissed him off more, being ignored or being left alone.

And now he had _nothing to do_ except manage what was but a fragment of his empire. It angered him to no degree.

The communicator beeped.

Frieza blinked as he noticed an incoming call from Yamcha. His hand automatically moved to answer it, but stopped. Did he want to speak to the human right now?

Was it _wise_ to speak to the human right now?

The tone kept ringing.

Yet another sigh escaped him as he answered the call.

 _"Hey Frieza!"_ Yamcha smiled brightly over the call, his hand up in greeting, _"it's been a while, huh?"_

"You could say that," was the short reply, and it seemed the human noticed he was not in a favourable mood.

 _"Is… everything alright?"_ Yamcha offered, a touch of concern in his voice, and the icejin felt that annoying pang in his chest once more. He turned away from the screen, his hands clenched into fists.

"I'm fine." He offered. Both of them knew it was a lie.

Yamcha was smart enough not to question it, and instead spoke up, _"I'm sorry it's been a little while since our last call. Things here have gotten really hectic, but I've got more time now!"_ the human had the decency to look sheepish, _"How about you? How's Destroyer duty treating you?"_

"It looks like I won't be doing any more of that for the rest of the year," Frieza nearly spat out, "so not good."

 _"Oh,"_ that explained the bad mood, _"in that case… would you like to visit for a while?"_

The icejin blinked and turned back to the screen, and for the first time during the call, his expression was clearer, "a while?"

 _"Y-yeah…"_ Yamcha smiled bashfully, _"I enjoy your company, after all… it would be nice if we could spend some time together, right? I mean, I spent several months in space with you… I would like it if you wanted to visit Earth for more than a couple of days like usual. If… if you want to, that is! I know how busy you are."_

He wasn't. That was the problem. His new staff were oddly far more efficient now that they weren't fearing for their lives at every turn, and it made production far more effective. Frieza was far richer now than any other being in the Universe, he suspected, but it left him with little more than administration duties to do.

No planets to conquer except the ones he already owned.

No uprisings to deal with because he _wasn't allowed to._

The leash was tight on him, and _he hated it._

The only time he didn't feel like he was on one was when he was on Earth with Yamcha, in his house, with his stupid cat, and his stupid company.

Only there. The one place in the Universe he never wanted to be, but the only place that had _him._

"... I'll be there next week."

* * *

Putting together what he would need for his trip didn't take long. He took a high tech laptop with him in order to keep track of what he needed to, and a small bag of belongings. Frieza didn't wear clothing, so he had no need for it. All he had was the stupid outfit Yamcha gave him, his formal suit, the cloak Beerus gave him and his laptop, all packed away in a regular sized travelling bag.

He tossed it into his personal ship, and flew to the blue planet like he had done so many times before. His trip allowed him some personal thoughts before he got to Earth.

His father had warned him that icejins felt emotions intensely, no matter what they were. Malice, revenge, anger, delight… they were creatures with powerful feelings and were moody by default. It was what made them so very deadly.

Frieza exemplified all of those traits. He was young for an icejin, easily in the human equivalent of his 30's. His species lived long lives, if allowed to, and sometimes continued to grow, as was the case of his father, who was easily three times his height. He didn't think he would, though.

He wondered how King Cold would react to Yamcha. Probably either shrug it off or put it down to Frieza having strange tastes.

Then again, he had never met his 'mother', per say. Or rather, other father. Frieza often wondered why that was the case. Maybe his father was simply one to keep his personal life very private, even from his very own sons.

Frieza had inherited that trait. He didn't want anyone knowing about Yamcha, and he planned to keep it that way for a very long time.

He landed on Earth where he usually did, far from human eyes. He shrunk his ship (he had to laugh - it wasn't as though Capsule Corp were the only ones who knew how to do that) and flew to Yamcha's abode.

Puar answered the door, as the human wasn't home. He didn't say anything to the feline, but merely nodded to him and went to what he assumed was his room. It didn't take him long to set up his computer and put his clothing away, and then flop on the bed once more.

He could faintly smell Yamcha's scent on it. The whole house smelt of him, but less so in this room. He was grateful for that.

The icejin closed his eyes…

* * *

He didn't know how long he slept, but the next thing he knew there was a knock on his door, and Yamcha came in, wearing a curious expression, and then a pleased smile.

"Hey! Sorry I didn't meet you when you arrived, but I'm glad you're here!" the human came over, "are you hungry? I was thinking of ordering some food tonight."

Frieza sat up, looked at the human with an unreadable expression, and then away from him, "fine."

Yamcha blinked, and he tilted his head a little, "are you alright?"

The icejin shook his head no.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

He shook his head no again.

"Okay. I'll bring in some food when it arrives, alright?"

A nod.

Yamcha closed the door quietly, and Frieza laid back down on the bed.

What he wanted… he simply couldn't ask for.


	12. Date

For a few days, Frieza didn't leave his room, mostly because he really didn't want to, and also because he wanted to make sure the Galactic Internet worked from this stupid planet. It took him a while to hook it up, but eventually he got what he needed, and was able to monitor the trades of his planet's stock, and other things needed to keep his empire in line.

One of the (many) things he liked about Yamcha is that the human very much respected his boundaries. He didn't interrupt him in his self imposed exile except to let him know that he had left him some food for that night. Other than that, he was left alone to his thoughts.

Eventually, on the fourth morning, Yamcha was enjoying some toast for breakfast when Frieza walked out of his room, and his heart almost stopped.

The icejin was _wearing one of his shirts._

"Frieza! Um," he knew his face was red, "g-good morning?"

"Good morning," Frieza stretched his arms over his head; the shirt was much longer on Frieza since Yamcha was quite a bit taller - it hit his mid thighs! "Um… why are you wearing a shirt?"

"I felt like it~" was all the answer he got as Frieza wandered over to the bench where Yamcha was having breakfast, and grabbed an apple. He bit into it with a grin, "do you like what you see, human~?"

The answer was an obvious yes, and Yamcha scratched his cheek, which were pink, "clothing suits you."

"Hmmm~?" Frieza finished the apple and tossed the core in the compost heap with the rest of the food scraps, "is that so?"

"I think so," Yamcha smiled bashfully, "I really like that cape that Lord Beerus gave you, too… and the suit you wore when we first met."

"Hmmm…" the icejin's tail swished from side to side as he seemed to contemplate that fact. If he was honest with himself, while he didn't really _like_ wearing clothing very much, he was beginning to not mind it as much as he used to, "I see."

Maybe he had some ideas of how to occupy himself after all.

* * *

Yamcha went off to do his usual baseball training, and while he did, Frieza learned what Amazon was. He then learned that Earthlings, at least, had some very interesting choices of what clothing they liked. He also learned they seemed to separate clothing by the sex of humans, which he found irritable. Who the hell cared about something like that?

In the end, Frieza just ordered whatever he wanted, and paid for it using his universal account, which had more than enough money in it to pay for whatever he needed. Within several hours, he received everything he ordered, which pleased him.

How efficient.

The only downside was having to modify them to fit his tail, which annoyed him, but it gave him something to do for the entire day. Somehow, the mundane tasks that he often expected others to complete for him would piss him off, but somehow, he wasn't so bothered today.

Once he had finished modifying his clothing, he put some on. It fit like a glove, and Frieza had to admit, denim suited him quite well. Black, of course.

He hadn't bothered to buy shoes, as he doubted any Earth shoes would fit him the way he liked. That, and he simply wasn't interested in covering his magnificent feet.

That night, Yamcha returned to find quite a surprise. He found Frieza on the couch, wearing a pair of black denim pants - were they freaking _Gucci?_ And - was he wearing a brand name shirt too?! Where had he gotten the money or means to purchase such expensive clothing?!

And why, at that? He thought Frieza hated clothing…

Holy cow did he look nice.

"Hey Frieza… went shopping?" Yamcha offered. There were a few boxes scattered on the ground with brands he didn't even think to look at buying, they were so pricey. It seemed as though Frieza did not care about money whatsoever, though it wasn't so much of a surprise when he thought about it. The icejin had _planets_ under his control, after all. It had to be a fairly lucrative business.

"Your website 'Amazon' is quite efficient, I must admit," Frieza waved his foot from where he was laying on the couch. His tail flicked a little in content little waves, and Yamcha noticed he'd put a gold bangle on it, "I order in the morning and it arrives by lunch, what a delightful system."

"I'm glad you had fun, though… how did you _afford_ all of this?" as far as he knew, Frieza didn't own a credit card.

"Thankfully my Galactic account seems to be compatible with Earthian systems~" he waved his hand, "so? What do you think? Does it suit me~?"

"Very much so," Yamcha grinned, "pretty sure you could make anything look good."

Frieza's tail made happy curls as he said that, "such flattery… are you always like that, or is it just with me?"

"Just with you," Yamcha smiled, which was the truth. While he was the complementary type, he knew that right now, the only one who he really wanted to give as much to was the icejin before him.

"You better not be lying~" Frieza teased.

"Of course not," a thought occurred to him, though. Now that Frieza had earthian clothing, he wondered if…

"Say… if you don't have any plans this evening, would you like to go out to eat?" Yamcha offered, which made Frieza blink.

He pondered that for a moment. He didn't really like the idea of wandering around on the planet, especially when anyone could come across them. He didn't feel like engaging with any filthy monkeys or anything that might annoy him, not right now. Not with so much on his mind.

"Somewhere private would be nice," he offered, and the human grinned, "how about we go down to the harbour? They have great food along there, and this time of the year is really warm out."

"Sounds pleasant enough," Frieza got up from his couch and went over to his companion, "shall we go now?"

"Sure!"

* * *

The harbour didn't have many people out and about, which suited the pair just fine. A few people glanced curiously at Frieza, but other than that they didn't think too much of him. If anything, they were mostly envious of the fact that he was wearing such expensive clothing rather than the fact that he was an alien. There were plenty on the planet, after all.

They sat on the edge of the peer. There were seagulls in the sky, and the salty sea breeze brushed over them both. For once, the icejin took some time to look around the planet he was on.

Normally, all he would see is the life on it as a nuisance that needed to be exterminated, and the resources as mere means to gain money. While he still saw the Earth as such in many ways, he had to admit that there were other lucrative markets to tap into… he might've been able to make a decent amount of money on this planet as well.

He swung his legs a little as Yamcha brought back their dinner for the evening. It wasn't anything super classy, but Frieza found that he didn't mind. He had never been particularly fussy when it came to food, as he didn't require as much as the human beside him, it seemed, and nowhere near as much as the filthy monkeys. He ate once a day and it was plenty for him, as Yamcha had quickly learned.

He took a bite of the burger he had been offered, and like all the other Earth food he had eaten, it was delicious. It was the one thing he couldn't complain about when it came to visiting here, or staying here for long periods. He could eat anything on this planet without complaint.

The sun setting bathed the sea in a vibrant orange, and the water glittered in the lowering light. The icejin watched the sun without a sound, and the human beside him seemed content to sit together with his companion.

Something… pulled at Frieza, as he looked at the water. He knew that his race were able to survive many things, including going underwater for very long periods of time. He had never been in a position where he was at peace enough to just… enjoy what he was seeing. It was a sensation he didn't really know how to feel about.

As dusk fell, Frieza raised his hand, and Yamcha watched him, "Frieza?"

"Be quiet," he said softly as his hand started to glow a light blue. The water of the bay began to glow, too. It was all Yamcha could do as watch as Frieza moved his hand in slow waves. The water moved with his movements and solidified into ice, eventually forming what looked like a huge water flower.

"Woah…" that was new, though given the name of his species, it was kind of natural that Frieza would have some powers over ice. "I've never seen you do that before!"

"No one has, because I've never _done_ it before," the icejin sighed and leaned back on his hands, "I never had a need to use my latent ice powers, but I suppose along with conserving my energy, manipulating my environment is a skill I ought to put some work into."

"It's really beautiful…" the last remaining rays of the sun shone through the ice sculpture, and several people had stopped to marvel at it, "you'd make a ton of money making sculptures during the winter festivals here on Earth."

"Hmm…" humans liked that kind of thing, huh? Well, that was a possible avenue.

The sun was gone now, and in the warm air, the ice was already cracking and beginning to melt.

Frieza didn't know what would come next while here on Earth, but he knew that maybe… just maybe… it would be bearable.


	13. Turmoil

It didn't take long for Goku to find out that Frieza was currently on earth, much to said tyrant's _extreme_ annoyance. He hadn't wanted _anyone_ to know, let alone the one person he hated above all other people in the entire Universe.

He had been out and about with Yamcha, browsing at all of the different stores when Goku had spotted them. It had made Yamcha extremely nervous and Frieza clearly pissed off when the saiyan greeted him like an old friend. Seriously? Just because they fought together once, they were suddenly friends?

Over familiarity was one of the things that angered him more than anything, especially from a _saiyan._

"So whatcha doin' on Earth? You're not gonna try blowing it up again are ya?"

Though as Frieza snarled, Goku seemed to notice that Frieza was dressed in Earth clothing, and while Yamcha looked absolutely frantic, it was clear that his friend was stronger. And the biting, evil energy that always surrounded the icejin was practically non-existent right now, though it was mostly from Frieza hiding his ki.

"Hey, are you living here now?" he asked,

"Go. Away," Frieza growled. It was taking him every single ounce of his patience to keep his power level sealed.

"Awww, you sure you don't wanna spar with me?" the saiyan whined, "I always said we could be great training partners-"

"I said," the icejin slammed his tail on the ground, breaking the concrete, "leave. Me. Alone."

With that, Frieza jumped into the air and took flight.

Yamcha watched him leave, and then turned back to Goku, "dude, you need to leave him alone."

"Aww, why?" It seemed like Goku was genuinely sad that he couldn't spar against someone so powerful.

"Look, Frieza is on Earth, and he's not going to hurt anyone, but he doesn't really want to interact with anyone but me right now," Yamcha tried to reason with the saiyan.

"Are you sure?" Goku asked with some concern.

"I am," Yamcha nodded with determination, "don't worry. Just… you know he doesn't like saiyans. Don't tell Vegeta or anyone else that he's here for now, not until he's ready, okay?"

"Well, alright," at least Goku was easy to convince. Yamcha was relieved for that, "are you _sure_ I can't train with him?"

"Deadly sure," in more reasons than one.

"Alriiiiiight," Yamcha could only hope that his friend would keep his word, and he took off after Frieza. He knew where he was heading, and right now, he was glad that Puar had chosen to stay with Tien until further notice. He didn't want to think of what might happen if his best friend encountered an angry Frieza in his house.

It took him longer to reach home, but he could feel the faint trace of the icejin's angry ki in the house, so he knew he was there. It didn't take long to spot him when Yamcha entered his own house, and was kind of glad not to walk into a destruction zone. At least his friend had the consideration not to destroy his home in his rage.

* * *

It had taken every single ounce of his patience and control to not beat Goku to within an inch of his life.

Frieza didn't want to see those saiyans _at all_ for his entire time on Earth. He didn't want to see _any_ of the Universe 7 fighters. The icejin was already dealing with way too much on his mind, including but not limited to his own place in this Universe.

He was so self assured. He always had been. Frieza knew from the time he could walk and talk that his destiny would be to rule the cosmos. He had once nearly accomplished that, and then it had been reduced to ash.

He rose again, only to be put on a leash and forced to do the bidding of a God.

The only control he had over his life right now was his relationship with Yamcha. It was why he was so damned inclined to keep it that way.

It was… _the only thing._

He sensed Yamcha return, and he looked over at his computer. There was a message from him, which made him get up and turn it on. It was from one of his soldiers, simply a report from the field saying that the planet they raided had been successful, and all resources were now being sold.

At least _that_ was good news. He'd have plenty of money to do what he pleased with.

There was a knock on his door, and a soft call of his name. Frieza wondered if he should answer it, because right now he wasn't sure if he wanted to blow the door off its hinges, blow up a planet or just not talk to _anyone_ because right now, he really was in the mood to kill something or someone.

He didn't want that someone being Yamcha, but he couldn't hide forever.

Frieza sighed softly, "come in."

Yamcha did as he was told, caution on his face as he looked at the icejin standing in the middle of his room. He didn't need to be an expert in reading body language to know that every single one of his muscles was wound tight in tension, even through the clothing he was wearing. His tail was perfectly still, as it normally was when he was angry.

"Um…" the human rubbed the back of his head, unsure how to address Frieza when he was in this state, "you don't have to worry about Goku! I took care of it. He won't tell anyone you're here."

"Good," was all the icejin said in reply, his tail twitching in annoyance. Still pissed, huh?

"That's not the real problem."

Yamcha wasn't expecting the soft statement, and he blinked in surprise, "oh… well… do you want to talk about it?"

He had only asked once before what was plaguing his companion, and Frieza had rejected the offer to talk. He didn't think he was really the 'chatty' type unless he was yelling his frustrations to his subordinates with the threat of death hanging over them like a thick cloud, but this time…

This time the icejin looked over at his human companion, as if weighing him up. He knew that oftentimes, venting his spleen helped, but this subject… it was personal and there was no _fix_ to it that he knew of. Nothing could be done to stop what was happening.

Nothing to fix.

Frieza took in a deep breath and sat on the bed. He patted beside him in a silent gesture for Yamcha to join him, which the fighter did. They sat in silence for a while before Frieza began to talk.

"I'm… _livid,"_ he said softly, and clenched his fists so hard that he drew a small amount of blood, "for decades, my family and then myself… we ruled most of the known Universe in its entirety. And then in one fell swoop, it had all been taken from me. My top lieutenants, my forces, my _life._ It had all ended in barely the course of a _week_."

"And if that wasn't bad enough, when I return? My army was in shambles, my empire in ruins… and then I'm forced to fight in a _ridiculous_ tournament with the people I hate more than hate itself, and to add insult to the injury," his voice rose and his body shook from rage, "even _after_ saving this pathetic Universe and everything in it, Beerus _leashes_ me like a _dog_ and _forces me_ to become one of his agents of destruction while I can't do anything that I want.

"If I blow up a planet with life on it, I get scolded like a _child._ If I want to rebuild my empire, I get _killed_ and sent back to Hell. And I am _never_ going back there," he turned his furious gaze on the human beside him, his red eyes burning with absolute anger, "I can't _win_ in this life and I'm being forced into a position befitting a _servant,_ not a PRINCE!"

Frieza took some deep breaths as he tried to calm himself, but that wasn't happening anytime soon, "I'm _sick_ of it. The only freedom I even have now is selling resources on the galactic market, and-" he stopped himself.

The only freedom he had…

The only place he felt free…

He closed his eyes.

"Here."

Yamcha took in everything that his companion said. He knew that Frieza couldn't go back to his diabolical, evil ways. Not now and not ever. Beerus wouldn't allow it, and neither would any of the fighters here on Earth. He knew that - Frieza knew that, and although he agree with his friends on that regard, seeing how it affected the icejin beside him was something different.

He didn't feel sorry for Frieza for losing what was the definition of evil, but what he did feel was some sympathy for his turmoil.

He had remembered the transition of most of his friends who had once been on the forces of darkness. Vegeta, Piccolo, even Tien to a degree… they had all suffered and gone through much to become better people. He didn't know if the being beside him had it in him to become 'good', but what he was right now wasn't evil, either.

"And now that stupid saiyan knows. Vegeta will likely figure it out, and the one place I actually could simply _relax_ and enjoy myself to do whatever I want will be taken from me too."

So that was it. That was why Frieza visited so often. That was why he came to see Yamcha and agreed to have fun on Earth.

Even if it was the one place that had everyone he hated… it was the one place he could also be _free._

Free from his turmoil, his reminders of his failures, and from his own burdens. From what he had to do… and what he could no longer do.

Yamcha reached out and placed his hand on Frieza's back. He could feel a small jolt from the contact, but the human could only smile at him, "you didn't just lose things, you know."

"What the hell do you mean?" he was in no mood for games, and if Yamcha thought-

"You have me."

The silence in the room was deafening as the icejin's eyes widened. In the past, merely gaining the human as a companion wouldn't have meant anything to him. It would just be another weak mortal to use and abuse as he saw fit. It wouldn't have meant a damned thing.

But now, it meant _everything._

He reached over and gripped the human's shirt in his fist, and he leaned forward to rest his head on Yamcha's collarbone. His companion wrapped both arms around him in a gentle embrace as the icejin's shoulders shook with all the repressed anger, hopelessness and every other negative emotion in the book.

 _"Thank you."_


	14. Want

The finals for baseball were right around the corner. With Yamcha training so hard, it afforded Frieza time to reflect, and time to enjoy himself once more since no annoying monkeys came knocking at his door. He was learning more and more about Earth and it's culture, and while most of it bored him to death, some of it was rather interesting.

Like nail art. He had a lot of fun with that one. Yamcha had come home one day looking utterly bewildered as the icejin was focusing intently on his toenail to draw tiny icicles on it. And glitter. Soon, every other day Frieza had painted his nails with a different pattern, but the ex-fighter didn't mind. If it made Frieza happy, even just a little, then that was what mattered.

Summer passed, and having the former tyrant in his house was slowly becoming normal. Puar had come back from his stay, and even he was beginning to enjoy Frieza's company.

Only because they had a mutual like of fashionable sunglasses.

It was weird, but Yamcha, of course, didn't mind. His friends were getting along, and that was all that mattered.

Every now and then, he would leave for days at a time to tend to some matter out in space, but he returned, usually with something in hand. The last time had been some kind of mineral that shone in rainbow colours that Frieza simply thought that Yamcha would like (he did) and other nick nacks that slowly found places all around the house.

Frieza attended the grand final of Yamcha's game, despite it being obnoxiously loud and having to wear the ridiculous uniform again. But Yamcha's team won, as he knew they would, and it made him smile just a little to see his human companion so very delighted. When he played his game, he seemed so self assured and confident - a far cry from how he had been when in battle.

Seeing his teammates lift a laughing Yamcha up into the air with the large winning cup made him laugh. Really, Yamcha? You could fly, is what he thought to himself.

But it didn't stop him from later on deciding to be cheeky and give his companion a kiss on the cheek in front of his entire team, much to the human's surprise. The cheering of his teammates had been worth it, as well as extremely amusing.

Part of him was growing to like the simple life. On Earth, he was richer than the Brief's family from his galactic work, and he could afford anything he ever wanted. Part of him was wondering if he should get a larger house for Yamcha and himself… but part of him was… content… with the abode they had currently. It had everything they needed, except maybe a bigger bathroom.

It was that thought that had Yamcha come home one day with at least 5 construction men and his bathroom practically dismantled, much to his extreme shock.

"...What are you doing?"

"Upgrading," was all Frieza had said as he drank a glass of his favourite wine, "you'll like it, trust me."

That night, they had a working spa bath big enough to fit four people, along with a seperate shower for quick rinses. Even though he had at least preferred to be _warned_ when Frieza decided to renovate his own house, he had to admit… it wasn't such a bad thing. They had even taken a bath together that night, though Yamcha had been a bit nervous being naked in front of the other given what happened the _last_ time that was the case.

"Are you afraid I'm going to pounce on you~?" Frieza teased him with a shit eating grin, which made Yamcha blush red.

"My entire baseball team thinks you're my girlfriend, so they all do," he sighed deeply, "I had to convince them that you weren't."

"That I'm not your girlfriend, or that I'm not what you Earthlings call a female?" The grin got bigger.

"Both," Yamcha washed his face.

"I don't particularly care if your foolish race chooses to place a gender on me that does not apply," Frieza shrugged, "though, if they used it as an insult I will kill them without a second thought~"

"Hahaha…" Yamcha tried not to think about that, "actually, most of them just commented that you were very good looking."

"Good, their eyes work," the icejin snickered, and Yamcha had to grin sheepishly at that.

The ex-fighter knew that Frieza honestly didn't give a damn about genders - that was obvious when he purchased clothing from Amazon and other online shops - he brought the clothing he liked and didn't give a shit which gender they were designed in mind for. Yamcha didn't really mind either - he just liked seeing the icejin happy.

Life on Earth was peaceful for the most part. It was not mundane, but it was nothing on the intergalactic travels Frieza had once done. Sometimes, he did have an urge to go to space, even if he wasn't required to do so by his forces. To go out and see the stars that was his birthplace… settling down on one planet had once been an idea he couldn't stand.

And yet… he had been on Earth several months now, and every day had been different and unique. He had tried new foods, visited new places, seen new things. It was only really now that he was beginning to see the beauty in the civilisations he once destroyed without a hitch.

Of course, completely obliterating existing structures because he could had been a waste of materials, but other times necessary due to the local uprisings. Even then, Frieza had not paid much attention to the designs or architecture, only that it got the job done.

Most days, Frieza sat on the roof of Yamcha's house, looking over the city. Sometimes, he noticed that Yamcha got visitors from his friends, mostly the ones he learned were named Tien and Chiaotzu. Maybe they both knew he was on Earth, and chose to leave him alone? He hoped that was the case.

Summer slipped into autumn, and the weather began to grow colder. Frieza soon filled up his wardrobe in what was easily becoming 'his' room with all different sorts of clothing, from coats to one particularly soft scarf that Yamcha had brought him as a gift.

It was almost time for him to return to space for a while, as he had more work to do, and more worlds to check on himself. Whis had not given him any more planets to destroy, but he still had plenty of other things to do. It was strange… but part of him simply didn't want to leave.

Maybe it was less about the planet… and more about the human he had come to call a cherished companion.

The night before he was due to leave, Yamcha brought wagyu beef for them to share. It was apparently one of the best types of beef in the world, and as they ate it yakiniku style, Frieza had to agree. He had never had meat that simply melted in his mouth the way this beef did. He knew now why it was considered something special.

"It's strange to think you'll be leaving here tomorrow…" the ex-fighter smiled sadly, "I'm going to miss you."

That was a new one, and Frieza blinked once before he held up a piece of meat with a teasing smile, "you would be the first to miss me, dear Yamcha~"

"Maybe I like the idea of being the first!"

"Oh my~" the icejin giggled, "was the double entendre intended~?"

Yamcha's face turned red, and he yelped the other's name as Frieza laughed, though the smile on his face was flirtatious, "that wouldn't be good, Yamcha… you should take your time with such things~"

The human covered his face with a whimper, "are you trying to kill me?"

"Hmmmm~" Frieza could only snicker, "you're the one who brought it up."

"I- you-" his face was hot, "stop that, dammit!" the icejin laughed all over again.

"I-I'll show you!" Yamcha stood up and pointed to him, "I-I'll be second to you, you can bet on it!"

It was only then that the human realised exactly what he had said, and he froze. Frieza blinked at him in surprise, his eyes wider than usual. The silence was thick as Yamcha's face couldn't get any redder even if he tried.

The icejin merely reached up and flicked Yamcha's hand, though there was a pink tinge to his cheeks, "is that so, hmm~?"

"W-well-"

"Are you willing to test that theory?"

Yamcha's brain stopped dead in its tracks. Frieza was leaning his chin on his folded hands, his elbows resting on the table as his tail did slow curls behind him. The human couldn't tell if he was talking about what he thought he was talking about, or if he was serious.

"U-u-um…"

Frieza had to giggle a little, "you thought about it, didn't you?"

"Well-"

"Does that idea excite you, Yamcha?"

"Uuuuuuh…"

Frieza grinned, but Yamcha still could not tell for the life of him if the icejin was just winding him up, or if he was serious.

"Well, it will take more than a fancy spread to seduce me, my dear human~" he stood up and stretched his arms over his head, "goodnight~"

It was all Yamcha could do but watch, red faced, as Frieza went to his room and closed the door behind him.

* * *

It was only after the icejin was back on his own ship that he even dared to stop and think about what happened the previous night.

He hadn't given it much thought once he left Earth and bid his human companion goodbye, mostly because to him, it had all been a big joke at the time.

Mostly.

Kind of.

Frieza didn't know, and that had him thinking.

He sighed as he leaned back in his chair after making some more calls and checking several of his sectors that still had planets under his rule. Amazing how much more productive they were, now that there was a galactic shopping trade between the planets, pooling and sharing resources in order to become stronger and more mighty.

The threat of a God's hand crushing them, though, had most of them making sure it didn't get too far.

But now that he could think… he considered his options. Was Yamcha serious? Maybe…

Was _he_ serious?

Frieza no longer had hormones coursing through his body from his breeding cycle, and hadn't for some time. And yet, more and more, the idea of sharing his body with the earthling was… not an unpleasant thought.

His race didn't exactly experience high sexual attraction, though some liked to mess around with their enemies in such a way. Frieza was not one of those people, as he had higher class than that. No, generally the only ones they felt any inkling of attraction towards were partners during a cycle, or-

He could practically hear the needle screech in his head as he stood right up, the chain around his neck moving with him and catching the light.

"No."

It wasn't true. It _wasn't possible_ for him. Was it? He shook the mere idea out of his head.

He wasn't going to think about it again… he would play it out. He would see for sure. He had to know for sure… even though, deep down inside…

He already knew the answer.


	15. All I need

Frieza's mind was once again in turmoil.

He didn't want to consider what was on his mind, not for the moment. It was a week before he called Yamcha again, and even as he held himself back… he missed the Earthling.

Calling him and seeing his scarred, handsome face again had made him smile. Yamcha was delighted to hear from him. They spoke for hours - Yamcha about his stupid game and how the season was going, his team's success, and everything else. He also told Frieza he had brought him a gift for the next time he visited, which intrigued him.

"You're not going to send it via Galactic Post, like last time?" he blinked.

"Nah, it's kinda special, so I thought you might wanna enjoy it here," the earthling offered with a smile, "besides, gives you a reason to visit soon, right?"

The icejin could only chuckle at that, and before he could stop himself, he said, "you're the only reason I need, Yamcha."

The human blinked, and his cheeks went red as he bashfully rubbed the back of his head, "wow, uh… thank you, Frieza."

"Y-yes," Frieza looked away, a dusting of pink on his cheeks as well, "very well then. It was a pleasure speaking to you, like always."

"Likewise, have a good time out in space!" with a smile and a wave, Yamcha was offline.

Frieza sighed softly and shook his head. What a stupid, mushy thing to say… but it was the honest truth. He didn't need a reason to visit Earth… he already had a perfectly good one.

* * *

The weeks passed. Yamcha's season ended, and so, he went back to helping his friends out on the farm with his flying feline companion. It meant he wasn't home too often, and Frieza wanted to return to Earth sooner than he would have thought.

This attachment… he didn't know how to process it.

Long ago, he had had a good relationship with his brother and father both. He had… loved them. His father had been very proud of him, showing him off like he was the most incredible creation he had ever made. His favouritism had pushed himself and Cooler apart, resulting in a bitter, unrelenting rivalry that would've pitted them against each other had his older brother not passed on. His love for his family died as cruelty and evil took over long before he even knew what those words even meant.

He didn't miss them. Not now. Probably not ever. He knew what would happen if either his father or his brother came back.

They would die again, just as he did.

Frieza sighed as he sat down on the asteroid. He had the cloak Beerus gave him on, mostly for warmth more than anything else, but the chain around his neck sparkled brightly in the light of the star that warmed this system.

He didn't really know what to do… until he sensed the presence of a familiar energy.

"Oh my, I thought I would find you out here."

The icejin turned to spy Whis in all of his glory behind him, and turned around, "what do you want."

"I was passing by this sector and thought I would stop for a talk," he offered as he came closer, but stopped as he spotted the accessory around Frieza's neck, "oh, my… perhaps congratulations are in order?"

The icejin was about to ask what the hell Whis was talking about before he looked at the necklace, and then shot up, his face red, "NO THEY ARE NOT!"

"Oh, my mistake," Whis blinked, "but if I'm not mistaken, doesn't that necklace mean for your race-"

"Yes, but- he's-" Frieza growled and thrust his hand out, "just drop it!"

"If you say so~" Whis shrugged, and spoke further, "but why are you out here? You do know that sun is not due for extermination for at least a few millenia, right?"

The icejin huffed and turned away from the attendant, "did you come by for a reason, or just to provoke me?"

"Yes," the angel smiled, "I noticed you had been making several trips to Earth, and merely wished to understand your motives for going there. As you know, my Lord is very fond of the planet. He would kill you in his sleep should you do anything to disrupt it."

"..." Frieza didn't answer for a while. He wasn't really thrilled at the thought of Whis having noticed his presence on Earth, even with him hiding his energy from as many people as he could. Luckily, the saiyans hadn't noticed him…

"Though, I must admit…" Whis smiled, "you certainly have a remarkable change in your ki since the last time we met."

"What?" he hadn't noticed that, and so he charged himself up, just a little bit. His energy flowed out, but unlike before where it was cold, sharp and cruel… there was a small, slight change to it. It was like the edge had been taken off it, but not in a way that dulled the knife, but warmed it instead…

How had he not noticed.

"It's quite a nice change, isn't it?" Whis smiled, "in fact, I haven't felt this energy from you in quite some time. Not since the time your father visited my Lord with you as a baby."

He didn't remember the visit, but he knew it had happened. His father had told him of how he had proudly shown off his two sons to the gods, telling them that they would be of great use to Beerus, should he ever need his assistance.

"... Tell me, angel," spoke softly, as a burst of cosmic radiation poured from the sun, causing his cape to whip in the solar wind, "this… change. You know why it's occured, don't you?"

"I have a pretty good guess, but I sense you already know why," said angel smiled, "don't you, Frieza?"

He raised his hands and placed them against his chest, where his heart was beating, and closed his eyes.

He would never stop being who he was. He was a proud, tyrannical, power hungry menace who had terrorised the known Universe for a long time. What he had now… he wouldn't settle for anything.

But he knew. He knew that he could not regain what he had lost, and that he could either settle for what he had now, or die trying to regain his empire. The small part of his mind, the part that had caused his ki change whispered to him, _'is that really so bad?'_

No. He opened his eyes once more. No, it wasn't.

What he had now wasn't what he once had. But he had planets. An Empire of a different kind. A job. Wealth.

And now… he had something he couldn't obtain on his own. Something that needed someone else. Something he didn't realise he didn't _mind_ having obtained.

Frieza turned to look at Whis, and with a small smile, he said, "I'll invite you, and Beerus, when it happens."

"I look forward to it," seemingly happy with his check, the angel left.

The icejin watched him leave, and he reached up to touch the necklace around his neck. It had all happened in such a way he couldn't have predicted… but this delicate, small fire in his heart was beginning to burn hot.

It strengthened him in a way he never knew possible. Never conceived possible. And in it… he felt a strange new energy, different from his gold form or his current final form, begin to make itself known.

He kept it to himself, though, and pushed the energy back into the small, flaming ember in his chest. The gods had noticed his change, but he did not want anyone else to know. Not now, and probably not ever.

Frieza went back to his ship. He had plans to make.

* * *

December settled over the world as winter took over the northern hemisphere, while summer invaded the south. While helping his friend farm the last of his crops before the snow came had Yamcha working up a sweat, enough that he didn't mind the cold. Yamcha had never been one to really worry about the weather too much, admittedly. All seasons were alright for him.

He finished in the field and went to wash up. Tien and Chiaotzu thanked him for his hard work, and as usual, the three sat down to talk about life in general.

It wasn't long before the topic of Frieza came up, and it was then that Yamcha sat his tea cup down.

His feelings for the icejin… he didn't know if he could call it love just yet. It was something close to it. Very close. He knew that he cared about him, and that he was impressed with how far Frieza had come in the last couple of years since they met. He could tell that, even if the icejin was not happy with the status quo… he was coping.

"Maybe?" he answered Tien when he was asked how he felt, "I don't really know yet. I don't know how _he_ feels either, but there's definitely mutual attraction."

"Huh," Tien replied with a bit of a smirk, "at least he's not a girl, so you don't have to be terrified of him."

Yamcha laughed, "no, I just have to be terrified that he could turn me to dust if he felt like it."

Or the planet.

"Even if you DO fall in love with him though," Chiaotzu sipped his tea, "how do you think everyone _else_ will react?"

Yamcha had thought about this, and he sighed, "I know the likes of Vegeta and Piccolo aren't nearly as bad as Frieza was, but I'm hoping eventually tensions will ease enough to get somewhere… decent."

"We can only hope," was Tien's reply, but he smiled, "still… it's good to see you so happy, man."

Chiaotzu pipped up, "yeah! Go get 'em!"

Yamcha could only laugh in reply to that. He was happy, wasn't he?

* * *

The ex-fighter returned home soon after with a smile on his face and many thoughts running through his mind. He loved talking to Frieza when they called… and he knew he thought the icejin was beautiful. But how far did his love stretch? Was it merely infatuation?

It felt deeper than that.

His thoughts came to a halt, though, when he looked inside his house, the object of his thoughts was sitting on the couch.

"Frieza! Hey!" his heart jumped when he saw the other. He was wearing that cape that Yamcha loved so much, and he had a strange scent about him. Like the smell of the sun… had he been somewhere hot?

The icejin slowly got up, and he walked over to where his human companion was and stood before him. Yamcha blinked and looked at him. There was a strange energy about him too…

"Can we talk?"


	16. Is you

The sudden request caught him off guard some, but it only took a moment for Yamcha to blink and nod, "of course! Would you like some tea?" it was starting to snow outside, and it was very, very cold.

"That would be good," the icejin watched as his human companion went to do just that. The heater was already on (Frieza knew enough about the house by now to do as much) and Puar was curled up in his cat bed, fast asleep. They had greeted one another earlier, and Puar had simply said he was glad that Frieza had made Yamcha so happy the last couple of years.

He didn't know what to think of that.

Yamcha came back over with two mugs of steaming green tea, which he set on the coffee table in front of the couch. The icejin took a seat beside his friend and sipped the tea, though his expression looked… Yamcha wouldn't say sad, but maybe hesitant? Contemplative? He didn't know.

"So...," the human began as he looked curiously at his companion, "what's on your mind?"

"..." Frieza didn't answer immediately. He gripped the ceramic cup with both of his hands as he contemplated how to even say everything that was on his mind. The icejin wondered… if he should start with the first thing.

"... when you gave me this necklace," he tapped the chain gently, "you told me it was an expression of our friendship," he turned to the human slowly, "and I accepted it as much, back then."

Frieza turned away, "but in my own culture, such a gift that was _created_ by the one giving it carries a deeper, far more significant meaning. You probably weren't aware of that."

Yamcha shook his head no; he wasn't.

"Such an act…" he took a deep breath, "is reserved for an icejin who selects another as their _lifemate."_

Yamcha let out a yelp at that, his eyes widening in shock. So he had given Frieza the equivalent of an _engagement ring?!_ On the fifth day of them even KNOWING each other?! He was glad that Frieza hadn't taken it as his culture dictated, but it raised the question… many, in fact.

"I had no idea, I swear!"

"I know that!" Frieza snapped, glaring at the human, "calm down! That's not why I'm bringing it up."

"O-oh…" well that was a relief, "then…"

"I've worn it since then because I liked it," the former tyrant ran his fingertips over the chain with a slight smile, but that soon left, "but the other meaning never left my mind. It may have clouded my judgement somewhat in our interactions… but my mind is clear in what I want now, and has been for a while."

He turned to Yamcha with a smile, and his cheeks slightly pink, "I don't want to be friends. I want to be in a relationship with you, if that's agreeable."

Said human's mind was blown. Frieza was asking him out? He couldn't believe it. He took no time in smiling brightly and taking the icejin's hands, "are you kidding? Of course! I'd love that!"

The exuberant display made Frieza blink, but he didn't seem to mind it so much. If anything, his mind was lightened considerably as the tension he had held in his body since coming back to Earth. Even his tail, which had been completely still, went back to doing slow, happy curls in the air. It was a start, and a happy one.

Yamcha even surprised him by pressing a kiss to his cheek, which made the ex-fighter chuckle a little. "Just to get you back from surprising me~" he even _winked._

"You idiot," Frieza huffed, but he didn't stop smiling. Now that that was done, he stood up and said, "now, I need a bath. I'm covered in solar radiation. I'm surprised you didn't smell it… or taste it…"

"Now that you mention it…" the human scratched his cheek, "I thought you smelt of the sun when I came in."

"Hmph, I see," Frieza waved his tail and wandered off to take a much needed soak in the spa bath he had installed without permission. But now… well.

If he was going to be in a relationship? He at least wanted a decent bath in the abode he shared.

* * *

Yamcha couldn't believe his luck.

He had always wanted to find love again, that was clear enough to anyone who knew him. But he never expected to find it with someone like Frieza of all people, or an alien in general. He thought it would've been with a plain old Earth woman… not someone like him.

Now that he had gotten to know Frieza, though, he was not complaining in the slightest. Frieza, for all of his evil deeds, had come a long way since the days of him ruling the Universe. Even if he wasn't happy about the fact he had to conform to the standards of the Gods, Yamcha at least could be silently happy about it until his boyfriend (that word made him internally squeal a little bit) learned to grow into the role.

He woke Puar up to tell him the news. The cat was delighted for him, happy that he had found someone, even if he had his reservations. He called up Tien too, and let him know the news.

 _"So you finally decided, huh?"_ the triclops smile was obvious over the phone, _"good for you. Though, if he does something bad, we'll be there for you, alright?"_

"Thanks man," Yamcha grinned. It was always nice to have support.

He knew the other news would not go as well, so he held off on telling anyone else, including Goku. As sweet as the saiyan was… he was sure that Frieza would not appreciate it. So for now… he just hummed happily to himself as he prepared dinner for the both of him.

* * *

Frieza never knew what it was like to get something off of his chest in the emotional sense, but now that his 'feelings' were out in the open, he sunk into the hot water with a pleased sigh.

He hoped that nothing would really change between himself and Yamcha now that they were a couple. He wasn't interested in mushy crap, but he had a feeling the human knew that.

Still… one thing he _was_ interested in trying… his hand slipped down his stomach under the water. How would this work, exactly? Their anatomy was so different, he suspected, given that he was not by any definition a 'mammal', or had the usual equipment that he also suspected that humans were equipped with.

Oh well. He'd figure it out when it came to it.

He hoped.

The icejin took a deep breath and let it out as the rest of his tension drained from him. He could only be glad that, even if he didn't think Yamcha would say no, that he didn't.

Otherwise he probably would've had to do something… well.

Beerus wouldn't have an Earth to come back to.


	17. Movie

Much to Frieza's relief, and maybe a little to Yamcha's as well, nothing changed with their relationship except a little bit of less tension. Now that their thoughts and intentions were clear, it was somehow easier to communicate to one another than it had be before, even if there weren't any present issues there. If anything, the one thing that DID change was one morning, Yamcha woke up to a weight on his side that wasn't there the previous night.

He looked over and found Frieza curled up against him, sleeping soundly, and wearing one of his shirts again. It seemed like the icejin had a fancy for them, much to the human's surprise. Yamcha didn't mind too much.

For a moment, he simply marveled at the extremely powerful being lying beside him, totally at peace in his sleep. He didn't think that anyone else had the chance to see Frieza like this, so he cherished it. It was early yet, and a glance outside through the gap in the curtains showed that it was snowing.

Yamcha sighed, and yawned deeply. He reached out and grabbed his phone to check the news, and while he did, his arm wrapped around Frieza at his side. He felt the icejin shuffle a little in his embrace, and then muttered something in a language Yamcha did not know, and doubted that it was one from Earth.

"ເງທ່າສື້ອອນຮ້ອຂນ," Frieza grumbled and then opened his eyes. He blinked once and yawned, his hand coming up to cover his mouth as he did so. He looked over at Yamcha for a moment, and couldn't help but smirk, "were you watching me sleep?"

"Maybe a little," he human couldn't help but snicker, "also, you were talking in another language."

"Mmmn," Frieza rose up into a sitting position and stretched his arms over his head, "I know quite a few languages that you probably haven't ever heard of. Out in space, the one I'm using right now is simply known as Galactic Standard."

"Huh…" Yamcha hadn't known that. He suspected that was why so many aliens had come to Earth and knew how to communicate to them, that something like a standard language had to exist, but he didn't realise Earth had evolved to share that language, considering they were specified to be on the _edge_ of Universe 7. He supposed some of the early aliens must've brought it with them and embedded it into Earth's history somewhere.

"So it snows on this planet," Frieza observed, glancing out of the window, though he didn't look happy, "cold weather and I don't agree."

"It's okay," Yamcha sat up as well and stretched, "you can stay inside. I'll be out today anyway."

"Oh?" Frieza turned to him curiously, "yeah, I need to get groceries, as well as visit the gym. The usual."

"Why don't you just have it _delivered_ like I do," the icejin pointed out.

Yamcha had to giggle sheepishly, "that's _crazy_ expensive, Frieza. I know you don't mind, but I sure do."

"Hmph, fiiiine," the icejin got out of bed and stretched his arms over his head, his tail swirled slowly from side to side, "I've got work to do anyway."

Yamcha could only chuckle somewhat as Frieza left the room.

* * *

It didn't take long for Frieza to 'move in' to Yamcha's room at night to sleep. Yamcha didn't mind this at all, even though the icejin didn't need to sleep as much as he did, but it seemed like he needed to more in winter than in summer.

Well, he _was_ kind of like a lizard. He was surprised he wasn't hibernating in winter. Then again, if he could survive the cold of _space…_ maybe Earth was more of an annoyance to him than anything.

He came home to Frieza not visibly present, but he could hear the faint sound of his voice as he spoke to someone on his comm system. Yamcha let him do as much as he put away everything he had purchased, and began to make dinner.

Things often fell into routine like this when the pair were together. Yamcha didn't seem to mind it, and often left Frieza to his own devices. He had even given the icejin a key to the front door ages ago, so he could come and go as he pleased, back when he spent several months living together.

Dinner was a simple affair, and after that, they both sat down to watch some TV. Ironically, one of the movies on was a ridiculous romantic one, of which neither of them really paid attention to, and instead talked to one another while the movie played in the background.

But then a kissing scene came on, and Frieza blinked at the television. He and Yamcha had kissed before, but never with… passion. Was that the word? He assumed so. Watching the couple on the screen made him snicker, "what are they trying to do, eat each other?"

"Y-yeah-" Yamcha blushed a little and rubbed the back of his head. The comment had him thinking what it would be like to kiss Frieza like that… now that they were a couple and all.

Frieza noticed immediately. His tail waved in the air before he used it to wrap around one of Yamcha's forearms.

"What are you-AH!" the human yelped as the icejin tugged him with ease, causing Yamcha to wrap his arms around Frieza, and bring their faces close together. A smirk was on the ex-tyrant's face when Yamcha blushed harder.

"Do you want to kiss me like that obnoxious couple?" he asked as his tail unwound from his partner's arm, and went instead to lay down beside its owners legs.

"M-maybe not exactly like that," cause what they were doing was kind of over exaggerated and gross. "But… I um… wouldn't mind kissing you."

"Well, I would hope you wouldn't mind kissing someone as amazing as me~" Frieza replied with a smirk, and stroked his hand up his human companion's firm chest, "go on then."

Touching Frieza was always something of a thrill, because Yamcha knew that the former tyrant never really let anyone touch him. He didn't know if Frieza had lovers in the past - he assumed so, given his position in the Universe, but he hadn't really asked. Maybe one day he'd find out.

Their lips touched gently at first. They had only ever kissed this way once, and if anything, it had been more of a spur of the moment thing. This time… it felt far different.

The good kind of different.

Frieza felt a warmth in the pit of his belly when Yamcha kissed him. The TV was drowned out when he became entirely distracted with what the human was doing. He was no fool to what was involved, and parted his lips a little. This was something he hadn't personally tried… but well, when on Earth…

Yamcha bravely took advantage of his parted lips, and he let out a small, muffled sound of surprise as the kiss deepened. Oh boy… he gripped Yamcha's shirt and let the human do as he pleased… for now. Their tongues touched, and while it was a bit strange at first, Frieza soon got into it.

It was strange… his body was warm, neither from the clothes he wore nor the heater, but his own internal heat, mixed with Yamcha's own body heat. His hold on his partner's shirt loosened a little, and he could feel the warmth on his face. Good lord… the human was a damned good kisser…

They broke apart after a moment, and Frieza could feel… wow. He had never felt 'hormonal' outside of his breeding cycle, and yet right now? He could tell. His body wanted more from the human.

"Do that again," he said softly, and Yamcha complied without hesitation.

* * *

After the impromptu make out session, they took a bath together. Frieza, on the other hand, as he eyed Yamcha's naked body from behind. He was not done… not in the slightest.

Once his human companion was in the water, the icejin wasted no time getting in… and promptly went right over to Yamcha and straddled his lap, much to his surprise.

"Frieza, um-" he was hushed with a finger on his lips. He was kneeling in the spa bath, but due to their height difference, he was not that much taller than his human partner.

"I know what your body is packing," Yamcha blushed at that, "and I don't mind. But before this goes any further… you should probably learn more about _me,_ don't you think?"

He had a very good point, and the human turned a deeper shade of red. That was very true - even though Frieza walked around naked pretty much all the time until he discovered human clothing, Yamcha hadn't really… _seen_ any kind of reproductive anatomy of any regard. He knew he must've had _something_ in order to reproduce, since he had specified that, but what that was, Yamcha didn't know.

"That-... that's probably a good idea," his voice cracked from both nerves and a little excitement, which made Frieza smirk in amusement, his tail swirled behind him,

"Are you nervous about touching my glorious body, my dear human?" he teased, and stroked Yamcha's jawline, "I'm not going to mind, since it's you."

If that wasn't a compliment, he didn't know _what_ was. "O-okay…"

He started at Frieza's shoulders. The gem like armour was hard to the touch, and smooth, like he had expected it to be. His hands ran over to the icejin's back, where he could fully appreciate the texture of his skin. It was a lot thicker than human skin, and tougher, but smooth. He could feel every dip and curve of the muscles on Frieza's body, because no matter what he did, his partner stayed in shape no matter how lazy he was. He was honestly envious of that fact.

His hands moved slowly down his back, and Frieza made a small, pleased noise as Yamcha continued to caress his body. His hands ran over the icejin's thick tail, and at first, he stiffened. He soon relaxed, however, as Yamcha merely stroked it in his hand rather than grabbing it, but made a small noise when the human put his hand on what was available of his ass.

"You naughty boy~" he smirked, and Yamcha took the opportunity to give both cheeks a little squeeze, causing Frieza to playfully slap his chest with a snicker, "taking advantage of me, are you?"

"Maybe," Yamcha answered just as bravely, and whoo boy… that was a _turn on._

Said ex-fighter moved his hands around to Frieza's front, now, and stroked down his toned torso and over his belly, to his hips. The idea of this powerful being before him straddling him with such powerful thighs honestly got his blood pumping. The very idea of Frieza dominating him completely did it even more.

It was only when he went to stroke said thighs that he felt Frieza's hand around his left wrist. He blinked in surprise, and the icejin's cheeks were red, but more serious than before.

"You didn't check a place."

Yamcha could only blink at that. Frieza didn't mean-

But the emperor guided his hand to between his own legs without a question, and Yamcha's face nearly exploded from the blood rushing both there and down south.

He hadn't exactly _looked_ very closely at his companions crotch because from what he could tell, there wasn't anything there. But… now that he could _feel_ what was there, there was… something there. He blinked, and touched it, which made Frieza tense up and his blush get darker.

It wasn't anything human, he could tell that, but as he touched the flesh, Frieza tensed up more. It was clearly extremely sensitive, whatever it was he was touching, and the more he felt around, the hole got larger in size, enough to fit a finger in. So, Yamcha did exactly that.

"Ah-!" The icejin wasn't expecting him to do that, and he gripped Yamcha's shoulders, "h-hey-!"

"U-um, should I stop?" the former warrior asked, worried by the reaction.

"For now," Frieza's breathing was slightly laboured as Yamcha removed his hand from where it had been and placed it back on the icejin's hip as he settled back in the water, his cheeks still red.

"Um…" Yamcha wondered what the hell he had even done except touch Frieza somewhere he did not expect to find, "what was-"

"The eggs have to come out _somewhere,_ you know," the icejin pointed out, his face red.

"O-oh…" _holy shit_ , "o-okay… I think I get it now…" His face was just as red. Did that mean that- oh boy.

He really needed to look up lizard anatomy.


	18. Gathering

It didn't take long for Yamcha to do just a little bit of research into what exactly he was dealing with, in regards to Frieza. It seemed like the closest creature he could find was something about Whiptail lizards, but it was enough to educate him, and that was what mattered.

He had been less surprised the more he thought about it - of _course_ Frieza would have different anatomy to a human. It made complete sense.

And, truthfully? He found himself not really minding all that much. They would cross those bridges when it came to it.

Meanwhile, Bulma called a gathering to everyone to come over to her house for a party, as Beerus had woken up and, as usual, wanted to be fed on Earth. Yamcha didn't mind attending at all, but…

Frieza was busy getting dressed in one of his usual fancy attires, and when the ex-fighter asked if he was sure he wanted to go, the icejin merely shrugged.

"Beerus will likely tell everyone there that I'm on Earth. No doubt he can sense me, regardless of how little power I'm putting out."

While on Earth, he had completely mastered his improved use of his power and conserving his energy while in his true form. Now, his energy was virtually undetectable, but in the times Yamcha had caught flares of it, he could sense… changes within it. Yamcha believed he had only detected them because of the sheer amount of time he had spent around his partner, but he wondered if anyone else at the party would.

The two departed, with only a bit of nervousness from Yamcha in the pit of his gut. He only hoped… nothing bad would happen there.

* * *

"WHAT THE HELL IS HE DOING HERE?!"

Bulma's screech threatened to blow out the ears of all that were there, including Beerus, who yelled back to keep her damned voice down.

"Um, Bulma, I can explain-" Yamcha started to talk, but Vegeta took once glance at Frieza and yelled, "YOU'RE MARRIED?!"

"Oh dear lord," the icejin was annoyed and he had forgotten that the stupid saiyan prince would've known about his customs.

"Wait, married?" Bulma became confused before Whis came over to soothe tensions. "Now, now, I believe some explanations are in order."

He proceeded to explain that Frieza had become friends with Yamcha and visited Earth many times over the last two years. Everyone was surprised by this, as no one had detected his energy, and that he had sincerely done nothing sinister over the time he had been there. Some of the crowd were suspicious, but Goku eventually revealed that he had seen Frieza on the street almost a year ago, much to everyone's surprise.

"And you didn't tell ME about this?!" Vegeta growled.

"Yamcha asked me to keep it a secret!" he protested, much to the indignation of the saiyan prince.

"Well… this is about as good as I hoped for," Yamcha sighed, and Frieza couldn't help but agree. He didn't particularly need to have Vegeta's harpy screaming at him for daring to make an appearance. If anything, his patience was tried enough just by being in the same area with a bunch of people who he sincerely did not like, and several he plain hated.

The only reason he had come was because of the food, really, very much like Beerus, which both annoyed him and also made him realise he was thinking like a God. The icejin wandered over to where the gods were sitting, and greeted them, "Lord Beerus."

"Well, well," said destruction god grinned, "haven't _you_ been through some changes. Taken a liking to Earth culture, I assume?"

It was obvious from the clothing he was wearing, and had even had a pair of custom made boots for his feet. Prada, of course - black with silver buckles. Mostly because it was cold at the moment, but also because they were dang _fabulous._

"Well, it's not so bad," he glanced over at Goku and Vegeta arguing still, "though I could do without the _noise."_

"Heh," Beerus had to agree with that, "speaking of noise… have you tapped into that power yet?"

Frieza looked away, mostly at Yamcha, who was being bombarded with questions, no doubt about him. His tail twitched a little, and then he looked back at the God of Destruction, "not yet."

It was safe to say that he was still coming to terms with it.

"Fair enough," the god ate a sausage, "good work, by the way," he glanced at the icejin with a knowing smile, "take care of him."

Frieza took the compliment as it was, and went to sit by his partner.

* * *

"I can't believe this," Krillin sat back in his chair with a flop, "of all the people you ended up with, it had to be Frieza."

"It's not like I _planned_ it, you know," Yamcha pointed out. He had watched as Frieza wanded off on his own to talk to Beerus, and turned to his friend, "besides… he's really changed a lot since he's been living with me on Earth, for the most part."

"Well," the shorter man glanced at his own wife and daughter. Of all of them, he was probably the most level headed about this entire situation, given his own position and who his family was. 18 had tried to destroy the entire world, and had in Future Trunk's timeline, but one could say that Frieza's sins were _significantly_ worse.

But if he wasn't going to be destroying galaxies anymore, unless it was on Beerus's orders? Krillin could live with that.

"Good luck, man," was all he said, "you have your work cut out for you."

"Yeah, you've got that right."

The ex-tyrant joined them at the table then, sitting next to Yamcha, and eyed Krillin. He recognised him, of course, and although the smaller man was still VERY much afraid of Frieza, his aura was as unthreatening as could be for a former galactic Emperor.

"Well hello again, little one," he smirked.

"Hello… Frieza…" Krillin grinned, while 18 glared daggers at the icejin. That was all that was said, however, as Frieza decided to have something to eat instead of picking on the short human.

Yamcha was just glad it hadn't ended in a battle royale.

Things settled down after a while, mostly because while Frieza very much wanted to start a bit of chaos at the party, he relented in favour of the fact that he wasn't really interested in ruining his nice clothing for the sake of a brawl. It didn't stop Goku from asking (pestering) him for a sparring match, however, to which Frieza merely reached up and flicked him in the head.

"I'm not interested in fighting you, monkey. Now go stuff yourself with food with your pack," he huffed, which of course was about as much niceties as Frieza would afford a race he absolutely hated. Goku could whine as much as he liked, but the icejin was lazy by nature and honestly didn't have any desire to pick a fight with the stupid saiyan right now. Not unless he was powerful enough to beat him, loathe as he was to admit it. Especially as the ridiculous monkey had mastered _Ultra Instinct_ for goodness sakes.

He might do the same… one day. Or, once he figured out what his new power was, focus on that.

If he decided to train again.

A tug on his pants made him blink and look down. Standing there was a tiny blue haired child - clearly Vegeta and his harlot's spawn, and at first he was simply going to send her back to her parents.

But her eyes were basically stars as she stared up at the icejin, making him blink. "What do you want?"

"Pretty!" she said, and pointed to him with a huge grin, "pretty nails too!"

Oh, right. He looked at them - he had painted roses on them recently, for the fun of it. He had to smile at this little monkey - at least _someone_ in their race had decent taste. He reached down with his hand and let Bra take a hold of it so she could look up close at the artwork on his nails. He could see both Bulma and Vegeta watching very closely, but neither cared nor felt the slightest bit bothered by the attention.

"Woooaaah!" Bra exclaimed, "sparkly!"

Frieza had to smirk at that, and he reached up to ruffle her hair a bit, "maybe one day I'll paint yours."

"Yay!" Bra ran back over to her worried parents, "the pretty person paint me!" she exclaimed, which made the icejin snicker a little.

"Did you mean that?" Yamcha asked softly.

"Who am I to turn down a fan?" Frieza shrugged, to which Yamcha had to laugh at. Tensions eased after the interaction.

* * *

The day ended easier than it had began. After everyone relaxed somewhat at having the former Galactic tyrant at the party, especially after seeing his interactions with Bra, of whom was half saiyan, which said as much. Vegeta, on the other hand, very much had his reservations, to which Whis addressed in private.

"You didn't notice the change in his ki, Vegeta?" the angel said with a knowing smile, "that's rather surprising."

"Change in his ki?" the saiyan thought about it. While Frieza had pretty much suppressed his ki down to zero, the aura he carried was still there. And he could tell… there was something different about it. Something… warm.

"You did notice it, didn't you?" Whis smiled, "you don't need to worry about Frieza anymore."

"... Are you certain?" the interaction with his daughter hadn't left his mind, but he knew that Frieza could often be gentle with kids… if only to imprint a false idea of him in their minds, only to betray them later. It was exactly what he had done to Vegeta, so long ago.

"I am certain," the angel could only smile, "things will be alright."

* * *

Once they returned home, Yamcha was just relieved everything had gone well. His friends had, at least for the most part, accepted that he was in a relationship with Frieza, or at the very least, were friends. That was all they needed to know, for now.

"I'm relieved, I have to admit," Yamcha sighed as he took off his coat to hang up. It was still cold outside, after all, "that went a lot better than I thought it would."

"You mean because I didn't kill anyone?" Frieza pointed out, and Yamcha had to laugh a bit nervously, "well, that, and maiming anyone too."

"Hmph, well, I didn't feel like it," that was his excuse and he was sticking with it, "I'm taking a bath."

"Okay~" Yamcha had some bills to pay, the usual. Things fell back to normal that night, as Frieza did his usual surveillance of his territories and planets, as well as checking the trades. He was a businessman by heart, and he was a natural born genius in many ways.

It was no wonder he had once controlled most of the known Universe…

Yamcha took a shower after Frieza took his bath, and was preparing for bed when the icejin walked into his room with just one of his shirts on, which was his normal sleeping attire, it seemed.

But when the ex-fightered climbed into bed, he was surprised when Frieza grinned at him from where he was standing, "so, my dear human… I saw you were doing some 'homework' on me~"

"What do you-" then his face went red, "you saw-"

"Hmmm~" the icejin just looked amused as he climbed onto the bed. "I was wondering…" he swung his legs over Yamcha's hips and pressed his hands against the human's chest, "feel like putting it to good use~?"

"U-um-" Did Frieza mean what he thought he meant? Had he seen him going shopping after studying to get some _supplies_ of a different nature, or something? He tried to think, but he was _very_ distracted by the powerful thighs that he was trapped under. He could feel Frieza's tail wrap around his leg, too.

"Well~?" The icejin prompted, and Yamcha had to do some quick thinking. Was he ready for this? It was very obvious what Frieza was proposing.

"Yes."

* * *

It had been a little awkward, at first, given they were different races. But after their hormones took over, it didn't take long for the pair to get into it, and for both of them to enjoy it immensely.

They were breathless afterward, Frieza curled at Yamcha's side, his tail loosely wound around his partner's leg still. The icejin had never let any being do what Yamcha had done to him before… but he quickly discovered that allowing it was probably one of the better choices he had made in his life, and definitely the best choice in the current years of his new life.

The pair slept a little afterwards, but soon woke up, and Yamcha could tell that Frieza wanted him again, to which he was happy to oblige. The awkwardness was gone this time as both knew what they were doing, and Frieza allowed himself to be lost in the bliss of of carnal pleasure that _his_ human brought him, again and again, until they both collapsed, breathless and boneless. Sleep claimed them soon enough, and for once… for the first time since he had come back to life…

Frieza felt truly free.


	19. Gold

_I can finally see_  
 _That you're right there beside me_

 _I am not my own_  
 _For I have been made new_  
 _Please don't let me go_  
 _I desperately need you_

Owl City - Meteor Shower

* * *

Frieza stayed on Earth a couple more months, but it seemed as though Beerus didn't need to destroy any planets at present time, but get rid of some dead stars, so the icejin was glad that he didn't have to bother with destroyer duty. While blowing up a star sounded incredibly fun, he supposed that with Beerus awake, he would just have to relent and go back to his own business.

Calls with the God didn't bother him as much anymore. With his empire of a different kind on the right track, Frieza found that while he still owned planets, he wasn't conquering them anymore. The balance in the Universe was back on track, and it was because of _him?_ How ridiculous.

It was a far cry from the usual evil he was… though being the lord and master of several dozen planets that he was blatantly exploiting for resources was certainly a _decent_ level of evil.

But the icejin found he simply didn't care as much as he did before. The inner turmoil he faced with being put on his metaphorical leash, and going after the gods, had been put on the backburner. He had found contentment in another source…

It was all so strange.

He leaned back in his cosy throne in his ship as his mind delved to thoughts of Earth and the one earthling he had come to very much enjoy the company of. Maybe Yamcha was very much the cause of his change of his internal struggles, but rather… he simply found that he had very little to care about when it came to his galactic empire, or reclaiming his army.

There was just no _need_ for it anymore. That in itself was just so very strange to him. To own but not to conquer?

Part of him wondered if he was going soft.

Nah.

If given the chance, he knew very well he would reform his armies, take over the seats of the gods, kill the Zeno's and become the most supreme being in the multiverse. He just couldn't be bothered doing it right now.

For now… he had other matters to attend to.

* * *

"You know, when I hoped you'd find love again, I didn't exactly have _Frieza_ in mind."

Yamcha was visiting the briefs compound, mostly to get some capsules direct from the makers themselves, and also to just say hi. He didn't know how the conversation rolled around to his relationship, but suffice to say he figured that it would be a topic of discussion for quite some time, especially as Frieza's allegiance was… well.

Questionable.

Yamcha had no doubt that Frieza would not harm him, or Earth, but that was only because of _him_. He really did hope that there were going to be more reasons… eventually.

"You know, I would've thought you'd be more open to it, considering who _you_ married," Yamcha pointed out with a touch of annoyance. When Bulma opened her mouth to protest angrily, Yamcha interrupted her, "look, I know Frieza has done some damned horrible stuff. I get it. I'm not blind to it. But I _still_ want to pursue this, alright?"

"... Fine," Bulma could only huff, "but he better not do something to harm the Earth!"

"I'm sure it'll be fine. After all," Yamcha grinned, "there's always Goku."

* * *

Beerus went back to sleep within a month, and Frieza soon returned to Earth in the height of summer. He liked that - the balmy hot weather did wonders for his mood whenever he felt annoyed. He also didn't sleep as much in the summer or hot weather, which suited him fine.

More time to plunder, murder and destroy, he snickered to himself.

Or… he fiddled with the necklace around his neck… screw his human silly.

His tail waved in the air as he flew off to Yamcha's house, and entered like he owned the place. Puar flew over to greet him, to which he couldn't help but smirk at.

"Hello, Puar - would you fancy a shopping trip with me?" he asked.

"Sure! Though…" the flying changling was still not exactly great at reading Frieza's ever changing body language, but he could tell that the icejin's request seemed benign enough. "What are we shopping for?"

"Jewelry," was all Frieza said as he walked into the house to pick out some clothing to wear, "who knows? I might even buy you some nice bling to go with your blue coat,"

"Really?!" Frieza had never brought him a gift before. Heck, he didn't think that Frieza was the kind of person to ever buy anyone _anything._

"As long as you promise to keep what I buy a secret," was all Frieza said after he had put on a stylish top and pants, though he ignored putting on boots for now. Too hot for that. "Let's go."

"Okay!" Puar and Frieza both put on their sunglasses, and out they went.

* * *

The icejin had been seen around the area for years, so his appearance didn't cause as much of a commotion as it once did. If anything, the only thing that regularly occured was that his outfits often caught the eyes of those who shopped there.

Frieza _always_ dressed fancy, and seemed to enjoy the attention.

"Sooo," Puar perched on Frieza's shoulder, "what are you going to buy?"

"A ring," the icejin grinned, "for Yamcha."

The implications of such a thing made the changeling gasp, "are you going to-"

"Technically we already _are,"_ he tapped the glimmering necklace around his neck, "but I want to get him something for _his_ ludicrous customs. And there is no way I am going to hold some ridiculous ceremony that I've read about, so this will have to do."

"I think that's wonderful!" Puar looked delighted, "oh, he's wanted to be married for so long…"

"That so?" Frieza spotted the jewelry shop, and made a beeline for it.

"Yeah! He's always wanted a partner and a family, ever since I've known him! Truth be told…" the blue feline sighed, "I'm practically the only family he has now."

Frieza wondered what that meant about Yamcha's parents, or any siblings, for that matter. Maybe they just weren't around anymore? His human had never talked about them. If anything, _he_ had talked more about his family than Yamcha had told him.

"I'm glad you're marrying him."

The comment made him blink and looked over at the feline perched on his shoulder, "is that so?"

"Well… I had my reservations at first, but you two seem to be really happy together," Puar was unbiased in the fact that all he cared about, all he had _ever_ cared about, was Yamcha's happiness. And if Frieza brought that to him, which he knew it did, then he would support them completely.

"Take good care of him, okay?"

Frieza could only make a 'hm' noise with a smile as they entered the jewelry shop. There was no question on whether or not he would take care of HIS human.

Yamcha was his, and he wanted that to be the case for a very long time.

* * *

He brought Puar a small bracelet for his tail, which Puar LOVED. He couldn't wait to get home and fly over to Yamcha, showing it off as he did.

Yamcha looked happy that both Frieza was there, and that his best friend seemed so pleased with spending time with his partner. He looked up at the icejin and smiled, "welcome back. How was space?"

"Nothing of interest," he replied with a stretch of his arms as he came over, a small bag in his hand, "don't think I left you out~ Come over here."

"Oh boy, what did you get?" the human asked playfully as he wandered over, and Puar floated in the air, trying not to squee at what was about to happen.

Frieza pulled out the small ring box and held it up, and Yamcha blinked once before it registered. That was a ring box. Was Frieza going to-

"Technically, you married me 5 days after knowing me," of which the icejin thought was hilarious, "but here, you give rings to the one you intend to marry, do you not?"

"M-marry-" was Yamcha dreaming, because if so, he really didn't want to wake up. They had been together for years now, and been through a lot together, but he had never expected his partner to honour Earth's traditions or have any interest in it.

The human grinned fit to burst, and felt his eyes water as he nodded enthusiastically, "of- of course! I'd love to marry you! Ahaha… Sorry," he wiped his eyes, "I'm really happy you asked…"

Well, Puar had been right about the fact that he would make Yamcha happy. He had never seen a being cry from happiness before. It was kind of weird, but he put up with it, because it was _his_ human.

He took the ring out of the box - it was a simple gold band with an amethyst in it, along with two diamonds on each side of the purple stone. Fitting, to make sure everyone knew exactly who his human belonged to. He slipped it onto Yamcha's ring finger and grinned, "there, now you're mine."

He wasn't expecting Yamcha to hug him tight and spin around, laughing all the while, but he supposed if such a gesture meant so much to his human, well…

Who was he to judge.

Puar was even cheering. Really? Was marriage here that exuberant? He was glad he wasn't having a ceremony. There was only so much mush he could tolerate and Yamcha was pretty much his tolerance.

Once he was set back down on his feet, Frieza put his hands on Yamcha's chest and allowed a kiss from him, but once that was done, he grew serious, "no ceremonies, got it?"

"Ahaha, yeah…" Yamcha figured Frieza wouldn't want one, "but we should at least submit some paperwork to the town hall."

"Bleagh," was all the icejin said about that, which made his human laugh and hold him close. Frieza could hear his heartbeat beating wildly in excitement from the event, and he supposed…

Maybe life on Earth had it's perks after all.


	20. Ki

Frieza eventually spent more and more time on Earth as the months went by. Before he knew it, three years had passed since he met Yamcha, and things had changed so immensely for him that he often wondered how one simple interaction with one human being could change everything.

Even his ki felt different.

And that was the most perplexing thing of all. One day, deep into autumn, he had gone out on his own to a deserted wasteland to do a spot of meditation. It was there that, for once in a long time, he let his powerful ki flare to life.

He focused as the usually purple energy flared to life around him, curling around his body like a familiar blanket. And yet… he opened his eyes.

His energy had gold and pinkish red flecks in it. The gold he understood, as he figured it was from his golden form, but the red-like colour surprised him. He could feel its warmth in comparison to the cold of his purple energy, but even he noticed it was lighter than before.

Was this the ki that Beerus and Whis spoke of? The power he had not tapped into yet? Was this pink energy part of it? Frieza decided to focus on it, and the new feeling it brought.

His energy swirled around him, growing in size exponentially. He closed his eyes and let it consume him, coat him, much like he had once done when he achieved his gold form. But this emotion wasn't brought on by pure malice and the drive to conquer. This one… what was this emotion?

He opened his eyes as a blinding flash of energy engulfed the area, and he raised his arm to look at himself. What was white was now silver, and what was purple was now tinted red, like a magenta colour. He could feel power unlike anything he had felt before surging through him, but the desire he felt having achieved this new power.

He smiled a little to himself. How ridiculous…

How many times had he told so many people that forming bonds was pointless? How many times had he told them that the only power they could rely on was their own? Ah… he knew the Gods would punish him some way, and the irony of this new power was not lost on him.

Oh well.

He let the energy evaporate when he felt a rapidly approaching ki. He looked up to see Vegeta approaching, and he landed a little ways away as the energy fell away to nothing. He peered over at the prince, who looked suspicious.

"What are you doing out here?" he called.

"That's not your concern~" was all Frieza said, since he really wasn't in the mood to deal with the saiyan, and began to walk away.

"Hey! Get back here!" Vegeta teleported in front of the icejin, much to his annoyance, "I don't care what you say, there's no way I will ever be able to trust you here on this planet-"

"Ironic, considering you didn't even know I was _here_ for two years," Frieza pointed out with a smirk, making the other man growl. "Besides, I don't particularly care if you trust me or not. I will do whatever I please."

"Hmph, staying with that weakling, well no wonder-" Vegeta didn't even get to finish his sentence before Frieza delivered a punch to his left cheek, his fist glowing with that new pink energy. The saiyan had been caught completely off guard by the power behind the blow as he flew back.

Frieza walked over to his former subordinate, his expression icy, "insult Yamcha again, and I will not hesitate to end your miserable existence, Vegeta."

The pink energy burned brightly as the icejin flew off elsewhere, his ki suppressed once more, but that wasn't what stunned Vegeta the most.

That energy… he knew what it was. It was no wonder he had been smacked so hard.

* * *

Couldn't he be left alone for 5 minutes to power up without someone or something getting in his way on this planet? Ugh. Frieza supposed not. His energy was like a homing beacon for annoying monkeys. So, the icejin went off world to practise with his new energy, lest he summon someone _else_ to annoy him.

It was peaceful, on Mars, but cold, which annoyed him. Still, better than monkeys being around.

It was there that he took on the new energy with interest, and then, began to practise.

* * *

Yamcha didn't expect a visit from the saiyan prince anymore than he usually did (which was never), so when he showed up at his baseball pitch after practise ended, he looked mildly surprised, "oh, hello Vegeta, did you come to see me?"

The prince nodded. He had since cleaned up the punch on his face, and simply said, "I need to know something."

"Alright…" Yamcha rubbed the back of his head with his left hand, and the dying sun caught the light of the gold band on his ring finger, which made Vegeta's eyes widen.

"You're _married?!"_

"Err, oh, yeah!" Yamcha chuckled, "that happened a few months ago-"

"To who?!"

The human blinked, "Frieza. Who else?"

"I _knew_ it…" that explained the energy. It explained _everything._ "Listen to me! Don't you **DARE** screw this relationship up, you understand me?!"

"Oooo… kay?" Yamcha was awfully confused as to why _he_ was the one getting the lecture.

"You don't get it, do you?!" The saiyan was having trouble with it as it was, and he needed to make sure that Yamcha understood the very position he was in, "Frieza's energy has changed. It's gone from malice to the _desire to protect!"_

Yamcha's eyes widened at that.

He had sensed the slowly changing ki within his husband for some time, of course. From the cold, icy feeling to a more subtle, warmer one, especially when around him. But to know it changed him that much… no wonder he had hidden it.

It was a direct contradiction to everything he had once been.

"So don't screw it up!" Vegeta snarled, and Yamcha sighed, "I never intended to, but thanks for the heads up."

The saiyan prince merely growled and flew off, the unsaid words hanging in the air. Yamcha had been the result of that change, and he knew what Vegeta was trying to tell him. If he screwed up their relationship, the changes in Frieza's ki would revert, and he would be more terrifying than ever before. It was obvious.

Yamcha had known that he was walking on a knife when it came to his husband for many different things. Honestly, everything, if he was honest with himself. Frieza was very temperamental at the best of times, and it was lucky that he was both patient enough, and understanding enough, to know how to deal with him.

It was what made their relationship work, among many other reasons.

* * *

Going home, Yamcha found that Frieza wasn't there at that point. He didn't mind, and started cooking, an activity he had always enjoyed. It was even better now when Frieza was around, as he liked everything Yamcha made.

There was nothing better than sharing a meal with a friend, or a partner, in this case.

The icejin soon returned from wherever he had been, and Yamcha grinned, "hey! Where were you?"

"Mars," was the answer, "better to train there without monkeys interrupting me."

Well, that explained Vegeta's unexpected call, "I take it Vegeta interrupted you here?"

"Yes," Frieza folded his arms and frowned, "how did you know?"

"'Cause he came to me after baseball rather frazzled, you know, like he normally gets but worse," Yamcha turned the heat off on the stove, "he basically told me not to screw up our relationship. Not like I planned to, but I guess he felt it prudent to tell me so."

"Ch," the former Emperor growled, "you know, if I had it my way, I would blow him up along with Goku for even coming _near_ you."

"Did you punch him by chance?"

 _"Hard."_

"No wonder his face had a dent in it," Yamcha set down their dinner, "he did say something interesting, though."

"Oh?"

"He said your ki has changed."

The icejin took his seat and sighed, "so it seems." he wasn't so keen to discuss it, but he knew that Yamcha probably already knew anyway. His partner, at least, took the hint and let it be for dinner, to which they ate in comfortable silence.

It was only that night before they went to sleep that Frieza felt comfortable talking about it, "I evolved again."

"Oh?" Yamcha blinked, "that's pretty incredible."

"The energy it used…." he gripped the sheets, uncomfortable with the implications, "is the desire to protect _you."_

That was certainly flattering, but Yamcha knew how confronting that had to be for someone like Frieza, who had devoted his life to conquest, vengeance and malice. The ki change probably had him a bit freaked out, if anything, no matter how much power he gained from it.

"I see," was what he said. "Well, given my history… probably a good thing."

"You need to get stronger," Frieza grumped right back, looking annoyed, "turn Super Human or something."

"If only…" the amount of times he had _died…_ if he had been a saiyan, well. He probably would've been ridiculously strong.

"On another subject…" Frieza wrapped his arm around Yamcha's chest and rested his head just below his partner's chin, "you should be aware… my reproductive cycle is going to hit me again quite soon."

Yamcha blinked at that. Right, it HAD been at least three years since the last one, "oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that…" after all, humans could just… reproduce. It didn't require anything like a cycle.

"Well…" Yamcha could feel him tense up a little bit, and he looked at the top of Frieza's head.

"How do you feel about having children?"


	21. Cycle

"Children?" It was one hell of a thought, and one Yamcha had entertained the idea of for _years._ He had been younger then, and almost given up on love, well, until Frieza unexpectedly come into the picture.

"Of course I want children!" he exclaimed with a smile, "but…" they had only gotten married a few months ago, "so soon?"

"So soon?" Said icejin raised his head, before it clicked, and he smirked, "not for me~ I thought about having an heir to my throne for quite some time."

"I see," it did give him food for thought, "wait…" he turned to his partner, "how old _are_ you?" it was the one thing he had never really bothered to ask, even though he was married.

"Oho, you didn't know?" Frieza's tail swished as he lay on his side, "In Earthian years… let's see…" he did some quick maths, "probably about 125 years old. And I'm still quite young for my race~"

That nearly blew Yamcha's mind, "woah! I had no idea…" no wonder Frieza didn't seem to mind the idea of having children at this point, given he had thought about it for a long time, and only now found himself in a position to comfortably do as much.

"I forget your species is so short lived," the icejin sighed. It wasn't something he liked to think about, especially now, "but it doesn't matter. If you'd rather spend time with just me," to which Frieza poked Yamcha on the nose, "we can always wait for my next cycle in a few years time."

That was always true. They had plenty of time… but part of Yamcha honestly did want to have children now. Was it too fast? They had been together just under four years… a lot of couples did have children within that timeframe… and well, there was the case of Vegeta and Bulma.

Yamcha honestly wondered how they were even married.

"You're really not bothered if we wait?" he wanted to make sure Frieza wasn't upset.

"I'm not," the icejin rolled onto his stomach and put his elbows on his pillow so he could lean his head on his hands, "after all…" his tail twirled in the air, and a smouldering smirk crossed his face, "that just gives us more time to _practise,_ doesn't it~?"

Yamcha's face went red, but he had to laugh, "it does…" he reached up to stroke the twirling tail, something that Frieza only allowed his husband to do, mostly because said human seemed to have a fondness for playing with it, "how long until your cycle hits?"

"If I'm right, and I normally am, it should be another month," he curled his tail around Yamcha's arm and yanked him, which caused the human to yelp and fall on top of the icejin, "now, I believe it's time we had some of that practise, wouldn't you say~?"

Yamcha couldn't help but laugh at that, but who was he to turn down his Lord? "I think that can be arranged~"

* * *

Winter came, and Frieza woke up two months later looking very confused and also annoyed. His cycle usually came and went like clockwork, but this time? It was late.

Very late.

It was unusual, for certain, but the icejin wondered if it had anything to do with being resurrected, or something else. It wasn't as though he could go to a physician and get checked out, either. All he could do was wait.

In that time, he talked to Yamcha about how icejin children often grew fairly quickly from babies, since they were created specifically as a warrior race. They grew out of their baby stage very quickly, but once they were children, grew much slower, at about the same rate as a human, until they reached adulthood. Then, they remained as much for a long time, occasionally slowly growing taller, as King Cold had done.

The extra time allowed both Frieza and Yamcha to make more solid plans for when they eventually decided it was time to have children, whenever that may be.

It also gave Frieza a chance to practise his new form, though he mostly did so off world to avoid attracting monkeys and the other fighters. He didn't care if they didn't trust him, he had his own life to lead, and his own Empire to deal with.

Though, the icejin was beginning to get a spot of cabin fever, waiting for his cycle to hit, so he decided to take a trip back to his spaceship to get some more work done that needed his personal attention. It was during that time that he mastered his new silver form, though it annoyed him that he looked similar to his older brother.

Oh well.

At least now… if he really wanted to… he would be ready if usurpers tried to hit him again.

Once he had mastered his new form, and his new energy, Frieza came back to Earth after a couple of weeks in space. It was now just beginning to get warmer, being February, and over four years since he had met his human.

How the time passed.

Once he came back home, he discovered that both Puar and Yamcha were not home. He supposed they were out helping Tien in the fields, as they often did during the off season, and he instead went to take a bath and relax for a while. All the thoughts about what was going on with his body was stressful, and extremely annoying. He deserved to be pampered, dammit!

By the time his husband came back home, Frieza had been napping. He heard Puar and Yamcha chatting to one another and some noise around the kitchen, but merely groaned and rolled over to bury his head under the pillows. He didn't want to get up yet.

Yamcha came into the bedroom a few minutes later, and spotted the sleepy icejin. He smiled and sat on the bed, "hey, welcome back. Sleepy?"

"Mnng," Frieza peeked an eye out from his pile of pillows, "rub my back, could you?"

"Of course," he reached over and began to do as much, working down from the icejin's shoulders to the small of his back, "how is that?"

"Mmmmmnnn," was all that Frieza murmured, the sound pleased as he flicked his tail a little in pleasure, "much better."

"Rough time out in space?"

"No, though I mastered my new form," Frieza replied, his voice muffled by the pillows, "just annoyed about my body."

So his cycle still hadn't hit, huh? That had to be stressful. Yamcha kept working on his back, before a thought occurred to him, "you know… I don't know if this applies to you, but I know stress can affect reproductive cycles in many beings here on Earth. Have you ever noticed stress affecting you in the past?"

It was a thought that made him blink. He _had_ been a little stressed about his new ki, and very aggravated from all the changes he had been going through. The stress from not being able to do as he pleased probably did not help.

So, if he just relaxed, it would come? Easier said than done.

"I _have_ been stressed about my place in this Universe since I was chained to Beerus," Frieza folded his arms under his head, the pillows falling off, "so if your theory is correct, it's no wonder my cycle didn't come when I predicted it would."

That made sense. Yamcha kept rubbing slow circles into the firm muscles of his partner's back, "how do you feel now?"

"If I had my way, I will kill him, both zeno's and rule the multiverse," a wicked smirk crossed his face as he eyed Yamcha, "but, I must admit… I am… relatively pleased being here, with you."

"I live to serve you, my Lord and Master," Yamcha bowed, causing the icejin to chuckle, "be careful, or I might just have to punish you~"

Yamcha couldn't help but laugh as Puar flew into the room, carrying a box of Frieza's favourite chocolates, "Frieza, have some chocolates! I got these for you!"

"Well aren't you kind," while the icejin still saw Puar as an animal that just so happened to talk, the two were on good terms, which was honestly of a great relief to Yamcha. At least ONE of his friends, and his best friend at that, had accepted the new life. "Next time I'm out, I'll buy you a steak."

The extra time, however… Frieza rolled onto his back as he broke open the box of chocolates and ate one… he turned to Yamcha, who had asked Puar to fetch some pork mince out of the freezer for him, and then said, "Yamcha."

"Yes?"

He swallowed the mouthful of chocolate and smiled, "so… it's been several months since we talked about this. Have you made up your mind? You might want to tell me before my cycle hits, so I'm clear in my mind."

Yamcha had, and he smiled, "I think I'm ready. Yes. When your cycle hits… let's give it a go?"

Frieza could only grin, "alright then."

* * *

It took a few days of Frieza simply relaxing and resting from the training and stresses of the changes he had made to finally see the results. Right on Valentines day, he woke up in a sweat, and knew his cycle had finally hit.


	22. New Life

Yamcha was greeted with Frieza's ragged breathing when he woke up. The icejin was still asleep, but there was a potent scent in the air, and it didn't take him long to figure out what was going on.

He quickly got up and went to shoo Puar away, since he didn't want his best friend to be traumatised by what was about to occur. After quickly cleaning himself up, he went back into his bedroom to find Frieza just beginning to wake up.

"Nnn…" the icejin breathed in deeply, and let it out slowly, his breath shaking, "my body… finally caught up…"

He had remembered this from the last time, but this time… Yamcha was feeling a little nervous.

If he slept with Frieza right now, they would have a child by the end of it. He didn't know how it was going to work, only that it would.

The icejin slowly rose, the blanket falling from his shoulders down his body. His eyes were half lidded as he breathed heavily, his chest rising and falling like he had fought an intense battle. The only time Yamcha ever saw him THIS worked up was whenever he really wanted to get dirty in the bedroom. It wasn't as though he had hidden that he was a sadist, and while he had never _seriously_ hurt Yamcha, he could tell how excited it got him when Frieza could see the scratch marks bleeding a little on his body.

Except right now, the look he was giving his husband was nothing short of devilish. Yamcha would've been afraid a few years ago, and maybe he was a _little_ afraid even now. After all, this would be the first time he had ever dealt with Frieza during a reproductive cycle.

"Come here," the emperor demanded, and Yamcha did exactly that, and sat on the bed. Frieza wasted no time literally pouncing on him, pushing Yamcha back onto the bed and straddling his hips.

Good thing he hadn't bothered to get dressed after his shower.

"O-okay, Frieza-" the icejin growled a little, but he managed to grip his shoulders and stroke down his back, "hey, babe, okay, just…. Listen up for a minute."

"Not really in a listening mood, _handsome~"_ said icejin replied as his tail curled in the air.

"R-right, but… how many times is this gonna take before it… works?" was pregnancy even a thing? Or did he just… know? Yamcha had no idea.

But Frieza could only chuckle low in his throat as he smirked, "as many times as it takes, my dear human."

"Oh boy," was all Yamcha could say before his lips were devoured by a very horny icejin.

* * *

He prided himself on stamina, he really did, but boy, he could _not keep up_ with Frieza while he was like this. He couldn't count the amount of times they had had sex in just that one day, but it was too. Damned. Many.

Eventually he had to make sure his husband was sleeping before he could slip away for some rest. Clearly whatever it was that Frieza needed hadn't happened yet, or if it had, he wasn't feeling it.

While the icejin slept, Yamcha ate, washed up again, and rested himself. Frieza didn't wake up until late the next morning, which was fine with the human, since _he_ sure needed his rest.

When he did wake, it was no different from the previous morning. Yamcha got pounced, though at this time he was ready for what the day would bring.

They paused after two rounds, and while Yamcha tried to regain his breath, that was when Frieza noticed something. His body was telling him - this time, clearly and loudly.

This time, it was the one.

* * *

It didn't take long to happen.

After they were done with their round and recovering, Frieza jolted up into a sitting position with a look of shock on his face. Yamcha was still recovering beside him, but he felt a sensation deep inside him…

He had never felt it before. It was like a pulse of energy… and it _hurt._

The icejin knew his cycle had ended already after that last round. The hormones had cleared significantly, and he was far more lucid, but now he was panicking internally.

His body… it was doing something and all he knew is that it was painful.

"Frieza?" Yamcha said softly, as he noticed that his partner had gone silent, and very still. Frieza seemed to snap out of whatever trance he had been in and looked down at his human lying there, clearly still tired.

"I…" he winced when another heavy jolt of pain shot through him, "I need some space."

Within a moment, he was up and practically ran out of the door to go to the bathroom. He ignored Yamcha's call after him as he closed the door and sunk onto the cool tiles.

He knew what was happening. He would not allow anyone to see him so vulnerable. Not even Yamcha.

It didn't take long for said human to quickly follow him after putting on a dressing gown (it was still winter, and still cold), "Frieza? What's going on?"

"Don't come in here!" the icejin snarled back, gulping down another jolt of pain, "and don't you dare open that door!"

"O-okay," Yamcha did not want to upset Frieza any more than he clearly was, so he merely sat down on the other side of the door, and said, "are you sure you're comfortable in there?"

"I'm-nnnng-" the icejin curled up on himself - the pain was getting worse, "I…" and he was getting scared. He _never_ got scared. But Yamcha… dear, sweet, kind and handsome Yamcha, knew he was in pain, and didn't come in. He didn't betray his boundaries, even now.

Frieza panted heavily as he tried to think. He needed to be alone to do this, that much he knew, but then his human spoke again.

"It's okay," he said softly, "I won't come in if you don't want me to, but how about I hand you things through a gap in the door? Would that be okay?"

The former emperor thought about that. It sounded acceptable. He made a noise of consent, "okay."

"What do you need?"

"Our blanket, and the lubricant."

"Okay," Frieza heard Yamcha move as he tried to breathe through the pain, and soon enough, he heard him come back. The sliding door opened a small amount, and on instinct he growled, but Yamcha did as promised and pushed the blanket through, as well as the bottle of lubricant, before sliding the door closed again.

Frieza wrapped himself up into a cocoon, and the duel scents of both himself and Yamcha mixed into the blanket helped ease his frazzled nerves. He sighed softly and leaned against the door as his body continued to do what it was going to do. Deep breaths were all he could manage, and the silence was both calming, and thick in the air.

"Frieza?" he heard his name called again.

"What is it?"

"Are you…"

"Yes."

The confirmation made Yamcha's heart leap with joy. He couldn't believe it, he was going to be a parent! But… he looked at the gap of the door… why did Frieza want to do this alone?

Was it his instincts?

"How come… you don't want me in there?" he asked, his tone carefully curious.

Frieza's heavy breathing was all that answered him for a while, but eventually he heard him talk softly, "this is… too personal. Even for you to see."

Yamcha pondered that. He supposed it made sense… this was the first time that he had ever been through this. He could only guess the way this was making someone like Frieza feel, in a position of vulnerability.

It made sense.

"Okay, I understand," Frieza was shocked by the reply at first, but after a moment, he simply smiled and leaned back against the door. That was his husband alright… even when he didn't realise it, he always understood him.

"Let me support you from here."

It was going to be hard, but Yamcha knew. This was all he could do, and he would do his very best.

* * *

Frieza was quick to grab a towel off of the rails to put under his body. All he could do was breathe deeply, and slowly, as his body went through the motions. Even though his father had warned him that pregnancy was painful, it didn't last long for them. Once they had created the egg inside themselves, with assistance or without, it was just a matter of getting it _out_ of his own body.

Right now, his body was making the egg that would be his child, and it was making everything inside him tense. All he could do was lean against the door, his teeth gritted tight, his hands over his belly as it grew, and wait. The whole process did not take long, as his cycle had prepared his systems for what was to come, even though it had been late this time.

He poured lubricant all over his hands and rubbed it between his legs, as he knew it would help, even if at this point, his body naturally produced a lot more than during sex. The icejin tried to keep as quiet as he could, but every now and then, he let out a pained whine that he hoped didn't go through the door.

His belly swelled, and he felt it, then. He couldn't stop the yell of pain as a large, bright pink egg slipped out between his legs, but then… it was over. Frieza's body shifted, slowly, back to normal as he breathed heavily, relieved that it was done. He covered himself with the blanket more as he let his body relax.

Waves and waves of hormones were coursing through his body, like he had just had the biggest orgasm of his life. But this… this feeling…

"Frieza?" He heard his husband call, "can I open the door now?"

"Mm," was all he could manage as he continued to breathe deeply.

Yamcha was careful as he did, and wrapped his arms slowly and carefully around his husband. He had never seen Frieza this exhausted before, not for a long time. It didn't take him long to see that there was a blood-like fluid all over the blanket, and towel, as well as a bright pink egg.

His eyes widened as he stared at it, and he found himself tearing up in pure happiness. They had done it. Frieza had done it. He held him close and kissed the icejin on his head, "you did it."

The hormones were still coursing through him. Maybe it was the scent on the blanket during labour, or maybe it was Yamcha being so close by, but Frieza didn't feel the intense desire to protect his egg from everyone, like his father had mentioned. He had wanted to be alone because his species was known for lashing out straight after birth, snarling at anyone and everyone for days. The hormones were to blame - they sent through the deep desire to protect their offspring, but there was also something else present.

Frieza reached down to pick up his egg - it was the same length as his forearm, only a little bit smaller than a watermelon. No wonder it had hurt like hell to get out. He held it close to his body under the blankets, and Yamcha in turn held them both close to his body.

Frieza didn't feel like lashing out.

He felt deep sated contentment, and an emotion he had refused to name for the longest time.

Love.


	23. All that glitters is not Gold

After cleaning up, Frieza moved himself back to the bedroom to lay down with his egg to sleep. The last two days had been _exhausting_ and he knew he was going to need some recovery.

With the sheets and blanket freshly washed by Yamcha, he helped as much as he could by making sure the icejin was comfortable. Even if it had been quick, by Earth standards, labour was labour and Yamcha knew enough about it to know it was very taxing on _anyone._

Frieza slept for two days straight, during which Puar had returned. The little changeling stayed far away, though, given Frieza's warning about him lashing out at anyone who came close to him at this point. He didn't need his house blown up.

Luckily for Yamcha, Puar was more than understanding of the situation, and truth be told, the ex-fighter couldn't be more excited about being a father. He wanted to tell _everyone,_ but he knew that given who his husband was? The only person he felt comfortable telling right now was Tien and Chiaotzu, of whom congratulated their friend with delight.

 _"I hope he turns out with your heart, Yamcha,"_ Tien had said to him seriously, _"I know that Frieza wouldn't hurt you, but you know what he'd do to us if he felt like it."_

Yamcha knew that alright. Frieza made no secret that, if given the chance, he'd go right back to taking over the multiverse. The only thing that was stopping him, it seemed, was his devotion to _him,_ and Beerus.

And, as the human was starting to suspect, it was more _him_ at this point than Beerus. It was something that filled him with both awe and also stress.

There wouldn't be much he could do if Frieza decided to fight him, after all.

He could only hope, as corny as it sounded, that love would keep him safe.

* * *

The icejin woke up to the sensation of something familiar. He blinked back the cobwebs in his mind and yawned deeply… he could feel an odd signal tingling on his skin. Like a wavelength that wouldn't leave him alone.

It took him a moment to realise what it was, and it caused him to frown. That device had never been completed… he hadn't ever thought it would even _work,_ let alone come to this planet.

He looked at the egg he had been curled around, and carefully wrapped it up in a blanket before resting it on some pillows too. With that, he left the house.

* * *

It didn't take him long to find where the signal was coming from. Huh, another invasion? Earth sure was popular. He could see both Goku and Vegeta on the battlefield, as well as most of their offspring and some of the earthlings. They were struggling, as he figured they would.

Well, well, well. It seemed as though the device he had been developing to neutralise the saiyans power - it was a signal developed entirely around their biology. He figured that since humans were compatible to saiyans and shared similar biology… they were being affected too.

He could even feel _himself_ getting a little weak. How annoying. He would have to transform then.

It was of great surprise to the rest of the team when he landed in front of the saiyans to look upon the furry faces of the invaders, who looked incredibly surprised to see him.

"Frieza?!" one of the bipedal wolf like aliens said in shock.

"Ah, ah," the icejin waved his finger, "that's not polite, you forgot Lord."

"Frieza… what are you doing here?" it was Vegeta who asked, though he could sense the question hanging in the air from the others. Frieza ignored them.

"Decided to finish some old tech of mine, did you?" he waved his tail slowly from side to side, "seems you've done a good job. It's a _real_ shame I'll have to destroy you for it~"

"What?!" The aliens looked confused - they weren't Frieza's lackeys, but they hadn't expected him to come to the defense of the Saiyans, either.

" _So_ annoying, but you see," he shrugged, "I happen to like this planet a _little_ more than I like you, so unfortunately, I must kill you. As I said, a real shame. I could've used that device in the past~"

"Don't get cocky, we made it to affect you, too!" One of the others yelled, but Frieza merely sighed and shook his head.

"You're annoying me," was all the icejin said before his ki flared to life. The others could only watch as Frieza rose up into the air a little, and his body shone a brilliant, blinding white.

The glow receded, and instead of shining gold like he had done in the past, his body glittered and sparkled from his newest form, shimmering with almost divine energy. Frieza opened his eyes and sighed - ah… it felt good to finally do battle once more, even if the timing was inconvenient.

"Alright, gentlemen," the former Emperor cracked his neck, "I hope you like singing fairies~"

* * *

The battle was over before anyone could really process the fact that Frieza had yet _another_ new form, and also that he had essentially protected Earth from an invasion. The icejin merely dusted his hands as the silver melted off of his body, the particles sparkling into the air until they became nothing.

Everyone could move again, and once they did, it was Goku who spoke up first, "wow, thanks for saving us, Frieza!"

"I didn't do it for _you,"_ the icejin was quick to point out with venom in his tone, "I did it for myself, and one other who will likely grow up here."

"Wait, one other?" Goku blinked in confusion, while Vegeta seemed to be putting two and two together.

"Now I bid you a terrible day, monkeys," was all Frieza said before he flew off back home. He wanted to get there as quickly as possible, and he was but a speck in the sky. Meanwhile, all Vegeta could do was ponder the implications of what the galactic tyrant really meant.

 _'It can't be…'_

Meanwhile, all that Goku could talk about with his friends was how much he wanted to fight Frieza in his new form, to which Vegeta could only scowl about.

Sometimes, he really hated that his closest friend was an idiot.

Scratch that, _all the time._

* * *

It didn't take long for Frieza to get back home and to get back into bed with his egg. He curled around it and sighed. How annoying, dealing with such a thing…

He wondered, as he looked at the hard pink shell… would his child inherit anything from Yamcha? Normally, it was not the case with assisted reproduction - it merely made it easier, and the child resulting merely absorbed the strongest fighting potential from both parents, as had been the case for him, resulting in the same spontaneous mutation that made his battle power so high.

But Yamcha didn't have anywhere near his level of power… so what would the little one absorb, if anything?

It was with that wondering that Frieza fell back into a slumber.

* * *

Yamcha had felt the waves, and he had felt it drain his fighting power considerably. But then, within hours, it had been gone.

The ex-fighter had gone to fetch some sensu beans before he had flown over to where he felt everyone's ki, but when he arrived, it was to everyone he knew discussing something, as well as a _giant_ crater with some traces of exploded tech… and some guts here and there.

"Hey guys!" he flew on down, which attracted everyone's attention, and he landed to look at everyone's faces, which had both looks of confusion, happiness and in Vegeta's case, as always, a look of irritation.

"Er, do I have something on my face?"

"N-no, nothing like that!" It was Krillin who spoke up and came over, "what are you doing here?"

"I sensed the waves, and I thought you guys might need sensu beans," he held up the bag, "but by the time I was almost here with them, the waves suppressing my energy were completely gone! I think I also sensed Frieza too, but I didn't think he'd be awake yet…"

"Wait, he had been asleep?" Vegeta spoke up.

"Yeah, for like, two and a half days now," Yamcha offered, "he was pretty damned tired, what with the egg and all."

It was then he realised what he said, and everyone's gazes, which made him inwardly smack himself. Oh jees, he really slipped up that time.

"What, did he mess up an omelette or something?" Goku offered, to which Vegeta yelled at him for.

"Yamcha, are you telling me that-" Vegeta began before Tien interrupted, "if you mean he's going to be a father, then yes," the glare he offered the saiyan somewhat held the prince's tongue.

"Yamcha's going to be WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?" Goku yelled, a big smile on his face, "that's awesome! You're finally going to be a dad! About time, huh? But then," he paused with a blink, "if you're married to Frieza, and he's a guy…"

"It's… complicated," Yamcha could only offer, his cheeks turning red, "I didn't really mean to slip it out like that but, yeah…" he rubbed the back of his head, "I'll be a father soon."

Vegeta decided he wouldn't express his disgust. Like any other of Frieza's race could be of any good to the universe…

Still… he eyed the flustered Yamcha as he explained it was only a very recent thing, and what he had said in the past. He hadn't wanted Yamcha to screw up the relationship because he knew that if he did, Frieza would potentially climb the thrones to the gods. While Vegeta knew he could take on that frostbitten demon, he also knew the latent power he held.

Him obtaining yet _another_ new form somehow had shown that. And the energy he wielded…

Whis had told him about the ki change, and about how Frieza was no longer a threat, but that didn't mean he was any less evil. His dialogue today proved that the only reason he had done what he had done was out of his own gain and no one else's.

Because he wanted his future child to be raised on Earth. With Yamcha, most likely.

While he didn't particularly care much for the human, especially not now that he had _married_ Frieza, he also knew that the good spirit Yamcha had would be a positive influence on whatever hellspawn Frieza had made. He could only hope that Yamcha, the _weakest fighter on their team,_ would keep the child in check.

 _'Unbelievable, relying on him…'_ the prince clenched his fists as he watched Yamcha wave and leave, after handing over the bag of sensu beans for future use.

He could only hope… that whatever child they had… would inherit the heart of a human.


	24. Kuriza

For the most part, life went on as normal for the next several weeks. Once the hormones from his breeding cycle had completely cleared out of his system, Frieza went back to his usual self. The egg had its own cot now, and it remained there surrounded by a fluffy purple blanket and a couple of pillows. Yamcha wondered when it would hatch, but his partner merely told him it could be anywhere from four months to eight.

The ex-fighter had had no idea that it took _that_ long to hatch.

Every night though, he couldn't help but give it a pat and talk to it, something that Frieza thought was silly, but also didn't stop him from doing, so Yamcha continued to do so.

Winter became spring, and spring became summer. The baseball season was in full swing, and Frieza spent most of his time either out and about exploring the entire solar system (apparently, Triton had some interesting properties that Frieza wanted to investigate) while he kept his egg in an incubation pod. Wherever Frieza went, so did the egg.

It was by the end of August that, finally, there were signs that something was _in_ the egg. The first time it had wobbled, Yamcha had been saying his usual goodnight to it, when he felt it _move_ under his hand.

He yelped and jumped back, causing Frieza (who had just finished in the bath and came into the room,) to look at him with a bit of judgement on his face, "what, did the egg try to eat you?" was the sassy remark.

"N-no-" Yamcha looked at the pink egg in awe, "I think it _moved!"_

Frieza blinked at that, and he put the towel he had around his neck over his shoulder to come and have a look himself. He crouched down beside the egg like Yamcha was, and put his hand on the hard, smooth surface.

It clearly moved again, and it wobbled in it's cot. Both parent's eyes widened, and then looked at one another, before back at the egg.

"It moved again," the excitement and awe was clear in Yamcha's voice.

"Uh huh," Frieza on the other hand sounded like he didn't know what to think.

"Does this mean they'll hatch soon?" Yamcha couldn't help but be excited now. There was really a living being in there! He could even start to feel the ki!

"Maybe…" many feelings were having a war in his brain right now. Awe, happiness, protective instincts, uncertainty… and some he didn't recognise.

But the most pressing one… would he even _be_ a good parent? Given his own upbringing, and what happened between his brother and his father. Heck, he didn't even _like_ his family!

What if… he didn't even _like_ his _own kid?_

Frieza stood up.

Yamcha blinked and looked over at his husband. No tail movement, and his face looked dark. He knew instantly that something was wrong, and spoke softly, "Frieza?"

The icejin balled up his hands. Did he have time to himself, or did he talk to the one he was supposed to dedicate his everything to? He didn't know how to feel, even as his human stood up and a concerned look was on his face.

"Come with me," Frieza finally decided, and he spoke softly. He grabbed his robe off of the hook on the back of their door and then opened the door to the balcony. There, he flew up to sit on the roof, a place he liked to come to to think.

Yamcha was quick to follow, and he sat beside his partner. The skies were overcast tonight, so no stars could be seen, and it was getting colder again, ever so slowly.

It took a while for Frieza to finally talk as he went through his thoughts, and eventually, he began.

"I wanted this," the icejin flicked his tail against the roof tiles, "but at the same time…" he balled his fists, "I don't know if I can do this."

Yamcha blinked at that, and had to resist a smile. He knew Frieza would probably yell at him, or punch him for that. He was worried… just like any new parent.

"I'm really excited, but…" the human sighed, "I'm also really scared, too."

"You are?" Yamcha had never let on anything like that. If anything, he seemed completely content to coo sweet nothings at a being who probably couldn't understand a single word, let alone hear it through the shell of their egg.

"Well, yeah!" he offered, "I mean… I've always wanted to be a parent, of course I have! But…" he looked down at his own feet, "what if I raise them wrong? What if I raise them badly? Or if I don't understand them…" he grimanced, and then looked over at Frieza, who was watching him intensely. "There's… well…" he looked away, "I don't regret them, or you, but they won't be human either. I just want to make sure I do things right by them, no matter who they grow up to become."

It was everything Frieza was thinking, but too proud to say it. But his partner did it anyway. After a moment of simply looking at his husband, he had to turn away and chuckle a little to himself.

"Frieza?"

"I honestly thought I was the only one who… was _afraid,"_ it took a great deal of effort to get the word out, "you didn't exactly act like a timid fool the way you do during a battle."

Yamcha pouted at him, "that's not fair, and besides…" he scratched his cheek, "I already love that little one far too much to ever be scared of them. At least…" he giggled, "until they start firing Death Beams around the house. _Then_ I might get scared."

Frieza had to cover his mouth as he restrained a laugh at the idea of a tiny little member of his race, flying around and terrorising their human father. The image was too funny, however, and the icejin found himself snickering as some of the tensions slipped away.

"You better start training again, then~" Frieza's eyes had a certain glow to them as he smirked at the human, "otherwise, our child will kick your rear end before they're toilet trained."

"Oh greeeattt…" he had been training, a little, mostly to keep himself in shape and his ki sharp, but now he figured he'd ask 17 or 18 to learn that ki shield ability they had, "well, I guess that's what I get for marrying one of the deadliest beings in the cosmos," he shrugged, and leaned back on his hands to smile up the thick clouds.

Frieza could only preen a little at that, and he felt better. It was the right choice… talking to his husband about this. He brought himself closer to Yamcha so their sides touched, and his human wrapped an arm around his petite form.

"I love them already, so much…" Yamcha said softly, almost to himself, "I can't wait to meet them."

Frieza had to admit… he looked forward to the day, too.

"You know…" the icejin looked up at his partner, to find him blushing a little bashfully, "I never told you this, but… I like your eyes."

"Oh?" Frieza didn't mind the compliment, but it was an odd thing to say. After all, didn't red eyes usually get associated with evil?

"Yeah… they remind me of red currants," Yamcha grinned.

"And what are those?"

"They're a small, shiny bright red berry that grows here on Earth," the human scratched his cheek, "they're not something that everyone likes, because they can be sour or tart, but if you keep trying them," he turned to Frieza, "they get sweeter."

The icejin reached up and flicked his human's head, "ow!"

"That was literally the sappiest thing you've ever said," Frieza huffed, but his cheeks were pink, "but," he smirked, and playfully batted his eyes at his partner, "I'm glad you like my incredible eyes~"

It was all Yamcha could do but laugh at that response, and the two stayed up on the roof for a while, just talking some more.

As they did, Frieza felt more and more at ease, and he felt even better about deciding to talk this time, rather than run.

* * *

The baseball season ended, as it always did, and the egg's activity more noticable. Even when it wasn't touched, it wiggled a little every now and then. It seemed to like Puar quite a lot, as whenever the feline flew over to it and sat on it, it seemed to wiggle with delight.

The only others who were allowed to even see the egg were Tien and Chiaotzu, and that was only because they came over every now and then. They had seen it once shortly after it had been laid, but the look on Frieza's face when they enquired about it had them almost running for the hills alone.

Luckily, Frieza had become more tolerant of their presence, and at least allowed them to see his egg when it was close to hatching. It was better than nothing.

* * *

And so it was that early one morning, Yamcha was woken up with a loud cracking sound.

He blinked away the sleep and rubbed his eyes. It was November now, and it was getting colder, so sleep was harder to chase away. But then he heard it again - as loud as ever, the sound of something cracking.

He blinked and looked over at the pink egg beside his bed, and noticed obvious dark lines in the pink surface. Yamcha was quick to switch the lights on and jolted up.

The egg was wiggling and _something_ was clearly trying to get out.

The ex-fighter felt his heart leap up into his throat.

"Frieza, Frieza!" he shook his husband's shoulder as the icejin grumbled something in his sleep, "Frieza, wake up!"

A growl answered him, "you better be _dying_ to wake me up so early…"

"The egg's hatching!"

 _That_ woke Frieza up. He was quick to shake the cobwebs from his mind as he jolted up into a sitting position, and his eyes zeroed in on the egg. Quick as a flash, he went right over it and carefully lifted it, and the blanket surrounding it, before bringing it back to the bed.

It was all Yamcha and Frieza could do is watch with battered breath as the egg shook and cracked some more, before it started to glow. The parents watched in awe as the rest of the egg disintegrate into nothing, and all that was left in the blanket was a tiny little baby.

Outwardly, he looked almost identical to Frieza, except where Frieza was purple, he was brown. He also had a little point on the top of his head, which Yamcha honestly thought was possibly the most adorable thing ever. The baby stretched and grabbed his own tail before opening his eyes, red just like Frieza's, but bright and happy and full of warmth.

Yamcha didn't even notice he was crying, and he quickly wiped his face, but it was with some shock that he noticed he wasn't the only one. He looked at Frieza in awe, as he seemed just as surprised to find tears on his own face.

Yamcha could only smile at him with a small laugh, and for once, the icejin returned it. The little baby copied them, which was just adorable to Yamcha, though Frieza would never admit it.

He would never admit that he was completely smitten with his son the second he had looked into those warm, red eyes.

"He's _so cute,"_ Yamcha gushed, and reached out to stroke his head, to which the baby giggled in delight, "he's like a little chestnut!"

"Yes…" Frieza's voice was soft. It was hard to process all of the emotions he was feeling… very hard. He was a being born to be a tyrant, to be malovant, and to destroy.

And yet here… he had created _life._ A tiny, adorable, precious little life…

"Kuriza."

Yamcha blinked, "Kuriza?"

Frieza chuckled a little, "in my language, it means chestnut," he looked at his husband, "what do you think?"

"I think it's perfect," the newly dubbed Kuriza wiggled his hands up to Yamcha, and Frieza passed him over. He could sense the power from this little one - far beyond that of his own level already… but the energy he gave off was warm and bright.

"Hey little Kuriza," he cooed at the child, "welcome to the world."


	25. Heart of a Human

Kuriza turned out to be a very active baby when awake.

He already knew how to fly, which Frieza didn't seem surprised by, and often flew around the house with Puar, who had became somewhat of a babysitter for the little one. The two had bonded immediately, which Yamcha was delighted by.

He grew very quickly, of which Yamcha had been warned about, but even he was stunned. From a tiny little baby, Kuriza grew into a small, but walking around toddler within 6 months of being born into the world. He had begun speaking, as well, at first merely mimicking whatever his parents said. He soon learned, however, and very quickly at that.

Yamcha was glad he had taken so many films of Kuriza when he was tiny. It seemed like time passed too quickly, almost. But it was a time filled with nothing but happiness, who absolutely adored his son to the point of nauseating Frieza sometimes, but he merely said that he could be the affectionate dad, and Frieza could be the tough dad.

Kuriza had began calling Frieza 'papa' and Yamcha 'daddy' to differentiate between the two, which suited everyone just fine.

Tien was the first one to meet Kuriza, who was slightly shy around strangers, mostly because Frieza had not wanted anyone coming around until his son could defend himself. The ice melted when Tien offered the little icejin a smile, which made him come over and introduce himself properly.

"I'm Kuriza! Um… nice to meet you!" he held out his hand, and Tien was happy to take it.

"I'm Tien, nice to meet you too," he could feel Kuriza's ki through the handshake - it was warm and bright, exactly like Yamcha's, but with Frieza's immense power.

He could only be glad for it. It seems as though his hope of Kuriza inheriting Yamcha's heart had come true.

* * *

"...so that's all there is to it."

Yamcha had given permission to Tien to tell the rest of their friend group about Kuriza before they met, mostly because all of his friends had younger children that he hopefully wanted Kuriza to make friends with. But with so much suspicion around Frieza, or rather, a great degree of caution, and naturally, Tien didn't specifically want to have that target someone who was innocent.

"So his ki is exactly like Yamcha's?" Goku looked delighted, "that's awesome! Maybe we'll finally have a good guy Frieza!"

"As far as I can tell, he pretty much is," Tien shrugged, "and we have to nurture that, rather than treat him with suspicion."

"Well, alright," Krillin was hesitant, as they all were, but he smiled a little, if nervously, "I think it's important we don't judge Kuriza for what Frieza has done. You're right, he's innocent."

Vegeta hadn't been happy about the discussion, and he didn't care for 'Kuriza' already. He let out a 'ch' of discontent, but part of him absorbed the words of everyone else.

His pride, however, was preventing him from agreeing with them. It was bad enough that Bra couldn't stop gushing about how pretty Frieza was for a _good month_ after the last get together.

He'd give the little hellspawn a chance. One chance, and that was it, as the rest of the group all agreed to the plan before the next get together.

* * *

The next party was without Beerus, as he was still asleep, but Whis still came, as he never missed a chance to enjoy Earthian food. Yamcha was nervous about going, as it would be the first time all of his friends met Kuriza, but Kuriza himself was very excited to meet more people.

He had only gone shopping a few times, to which those who knew Frieza congratulated him on his child, which the icejin found rather strange, but accepted it nonetheless. He wasn't going to turn down a compliment when given one. And, it gave Kuriza the social interactions he certainly needed to integrate into Earth society.

So when the family arrived at the party, Yamcha holding Kuriza in his arms with Frieza beside him, and the child looked around in awe.

"Wow, there's so many strong people here!" he had exclaimed.

Yamcha chuckled and stroked his head, "everyone… this is our son, Kuriza."

The young icejin blinked and smiled shyly at everyone, "hello…"

While everyone was wary, Goku was the first to approach his old friend, "hey, Yamcha! Aww, Kuriza is a cutie!"

Frieza had to restrain a growl from the saiyan even coming near his son, and he decided that if said saiyan made him upset he would kill him. Too bad, really, that Kuriza greeted him happily and flew out of Yamcha's arms to go and introduce himself to the rest of the kids present.

"So, how old is he?" Goku asked.

"Eight months now," Yamcha chuckled as the saiyan gawked, "icejin's grow _really_ fast."

"I'll say…" Goku looked at Frieza, who glared back, "what, monkey?"

"Think we can spar in your silver form someday?" he asked eagerly.

Frieza merely walked away to go and talk to Whis, much to Goku's protesting. Yamcha could only shake his head - typical Goku.

Meanwhile, he watched as Kuriza introduced himself to Bra, who took a shine to the icejin straight away. Pan, as well, both dragged him away to go and play, which made Yamcha smile. Bra seemed to just want to play dress up and didn't seem all that interested in fighting, but Kuriza embraced that. The little icejin let Bra put whatever she liked on him, from dresses to cool shirts.

"Looks like he inherited your heart after all," Tien had come to stand beside his lifelong friend, and Yamcha nodded, "yeah… he has."

Pan challenged Kuriza to a sparring match, which at first worried Gohan and Videl, but they could only watch with some degree of amazement as the little icejin's ki flared to life. It was white, just like Yamcha's own.

Yamcha and Frieza had both taught Kuriza the basics, but like Frieza, he was naturally extremely talented at fighting. The parents watch them exchange blows, and with a look of surprise, Kuriza took a very familiar stance.

He spread out his fingers into claws as the sound of a wolf howled, and he rushed forward, "Woooolf… fang…. FIST!"

Pan countered it with her own ki blast, which threw Kuriza backward, but he got up with a chuckle and a shake of his head, "I guess I need more practise."

"That was so fun!" Pan cheered. She hardly found anyone her own age who could keep up with her, and Bra wasn't exactly all that interested in training yet, "can we train again?"

"Uh, sure!" Kuriza grinned, "I'd like that. Daddy says I'd learn a lot from training with others."

"Daddy is…?" Tien questioned.

"Me," Yamcha smiled, "Papa is Frieza."

"Gotcha."

Meanwhile, Whis congratulated Frieza on the new addition, and his work while Beerus was asleep. He had paused to watch the sparring match, and Whis looked at the icejin beside him, whose gaze was razor sharp on the pair. He watched his son get back up, and Whis knew.

The devotion that Frieza now had to his family…

Yamcha and Kuriza both were the ones who were keeping him on Earth now, and the ones… who had changed him. Whis knew that Frieza would seize any chance to power… but now.

"You love them both very much, don't you?" the angel said with a smile.

Frieza glanced at him, and back to his son, and did not reply.


	26. Saffron

Everything changed from that party forward.

For one thing, Frieza found that his house was invaded by the half saiyan and quarter saiyan brats that Kuriza had become friends with. At first, he didn't like it at all, but after seeing how happy his son was (and how Bra seemed to be… pretty dang fabulous for a saiyan) his tolerance for them increased.

Like he promised, he did in fact paint Bra's nails, once he got her to hold still. He painted all sorts of things on them, such as simple shapes, all the way down to a likeness of Bra's very own face. The little girl had been enthralled with the artwork, and Frieza had to admit that, of all the saiyans he had had to put up with, she was literally the only one who he could even hold an inkling of like for.

And that was saying a lot.

Vegeta, on the other hand, was not happy about the friendship, but every time he brought it up, Bra cracked such a tantrum that all he could do was back down each time. Eventually he realised that there was no point in continuing to harass his daughter about it, because it seemed as though all Frieza had ever done was paint her nails.

Kuriza's growth slowed down after a couple of years, and he started to grow the same as the other children. He was still very small, and only came up to Frieza's thigh for quite some time.

The child ended up being sweet, but he learned Frieza's sass and wit very quickly, especially as his power grew from training with both of his parents. While he was respectful to his friends, of the enemies they encountered on his adventures with his best friends, he was about as crass as Vegeta could be.

Frieza had literally grounded him for speaking 'like an inbred monkey's uncle' for a week. Yamcha secretly thought it was hilarious, but he could see where his husband was coming from. He was a prince, after all, and spoke in an incredibly elegant fashion, which obviously Kuriza only chose to inherit when he felt like it.

Good thing Frieza was good at giving frightening death glares.

Yamcha eventually retired from baseball, as he was getting older, and also at Frieza's insistence, since he had enough money to last several lifetimes. The ex-fighter became a devoted father to Kuriza, and kept up his martial arts by training with Tien in his new dojo on occasion.

Three years passed quickly, and soon enough, Frieza was due for another cycle. It prompted another conversation one night, the closer it crept up, as Kuriza spent the night at the Briefs compound, having a sleepover with Bra and Pan.

"Yamcha," Frieza had wrapped a robe around himself after getting out of the bath, "my cycle is coming again."

"Wow, that time already, huh?" Yamcha had been watching the news as Frieza took a bath on his own (as much as he liked to join his husband from time to time, they did enjoy some alone time), but turned the TV off to stand up and come over, "I'm guessing since you're bringing it up…"

Frieza looked conflicted. _He_ had had an older brother, and neither he nor Cooler had gotten along after a while. What would happen if he had another child, and that child decided they hated Kuriza?

Could he really deal with it?

"Truthfully, I'm not sure how I feel about it," the icejin admitted with a sigh, "Cooler and I _hated_ each other before long."

"Didn't you both used to get along, though?" Yamcha asked, "wasn't it because your dad played favourites, and that's what drove you apart?"

It was, but Frieza was still unsure. He had only told Yamcha small parts of his history with his older brother, the bare basics. Frankly, he barely remembered much of his past with Cooler as it was.

It wasn't as though they hadn't talked about having a second child, either. Frieza had said he didn't mind the idea, but to leave it until he was closer to his cycle to ponder more on. It wasn't as though money was an issue, though they would need to buy a bigger house to accomodate the second one.

The icejin felt hands on his shoulders, and he was drawn out of his thoughts by Yamcha giving him a kiss on his head.

"How about we sleep on it?" the human offered, and Frieza decided that was a wise move.

That night, curled up with his lifemate in the warm, comfortable bed, Frieza dreamed…

* * *

 _He had only been 6 months old when his father had realised Frieza had an incredibly high power level, far higher than Cooler's or even his own. At the time, Frieza being born pure white was something unheard of for Icejins, and he was hailed as an almost divine being._

 _He had been playing with Cooler one day when he noticed his older brother didn't seem very happy. Frieza went up to him and asked what was wrong rather innocently._

 _Cooler couldn't have been older than 4 years._

 _"Dad doesn't seem to want to play with me anymore."_

 _"How come?" Frieza asked again._

 _"He says that I should start training on my own," Cooler looked away, "he wants to focus on you now."_

 _"Oh…" Frieza looked down at the ball in his hands. It was his favourite - shiny and brown. With a smile, he held it up to Cooler, "here!"_

 _Cooler looked surprised, and took the ball, "isn't this your favourite toy?"_

 _"Uh-huh!" Frieza grinned brightly, "you should take it with you! I'm sure daddy will want to train with you again! You're way stronger than me!"_

 _Cooler had smiled a little, and looked down at the ball. He reached over and rubbed the top of Frieza's head, "thanks, lil bro. Maybe some solitary training will do me some good, after all."_

 _"When you get back, we should spar again!" Frieza looked excited at the prospect, "see which one of us is strongest!"_

 _"Maybe I will," with a parting wave, Cooler left._

 _They did not see each other again for many, many years, and when they met again, they were both very different people._

* * *

Frieza woke up with a sharp intake of breath.

It wasn't even dawn yet. Yamcha was still sleeping soundly beside him, oblivious to the dreams of his partner. His warmth provided some comfort from the dream… but Frieza quietly slipped out of his arms and out of the bedroom.

He went to what was now Kuriza's room, but in it he had kept one part of the wardrobe in it locked for himself until his son needed it. Inside were some clothing, like his formal suit and his cloak from Beerus… as well as some other amenities. He looked through one small box to find a capsule, which he expanded to form a high tech tablet. It had the crest of his royal family on it, as it had been his father's.

Frieza had not looked at this album for a very, very long time.

He went out into the lounge room and sat on the couch, not wanting to disturb Yamcha's sleep. Frieza booted up the old tablet, and waited until it was on. Once done, he went into a photo album.

There was his father, holding Cooler shortly after he had been born. Frieza swiped through them, not particularly interested in most of them. What did interest him is that Cold had taken quite a lot of photos of Cooler before he had come into the picture.

And then… there _he_ was.

It was hard to believe he had once been the same size as Kuriza.

He started flicking through the photos. At first, there had been plenty of both brothers, some of them with them playing together or sparring, but eventually, Cooler faded into the background, and there were just photos of him and his father. The last photo had been of all three of them wearing their royal suits, but the glare the two siblings had for one another was enough that Frieza could feel the hatred in the photo clear as day, as though he was back there.

He turned off the tablet and set it aside. Yamcha had been right, of course… it had been his father's fault that he and Cooler had been driven so far apart. He had almost forgotten that he once used to look up to his older brother.

Scratch that, he _had_ forgotten.

As he put the tablet back where it belonged, Frieza locked the wardrobe again and climbed back into bed with Yamcha. The human merely made a sound in his sleep and pulled Frieza close, which made the icejin smile.

But it soon left his face.

He had no regrets for his previous life. He knew it wouldn't take much to go and rule the Universe again. Maybe become a destroyer god? Hell, he had the power. That'd be _fun,_ truly…

But as he looked at his sleeping husband, all thoughts of Universal domination left his mind, and he burrowed his face into Yamcha's chest to take in his scent.

Yamcha always did this to him. He was so… _distracting._

And yet, all it did was make him yearn for his human all the more. Ugh, he really had landed himself in a metaphorical pickle.

The dream, and the photos… it made him realise that while he and Cooler really did grow apart, their upbringing had an enormous amount to deal with it. Here on Earth… they would be one family unit…

He knew that here, if he were to have another child… maybe, just maybe, they wouldn't be cursed with the same damnation he and his brother had inevitably endured.

And he knew that…

Because he had Yamcha.

With his mind made up, he reached up to shake Yamcha's shoulder, "Yamcha, wake up."

"Mmnn…" was all the human said in reply, so Frieza smirked. Playing hardball, was he? Fair enough. He leaned up and started sucking on Yamcha's earlobe.

"Oh…" the human mumbled, "mmn… Frieza... you naughty… prince…"

Frieza could only giggle at that and kept sucking. He loved this game. He ran his fingernails down his human's back, and that got him awake.

"Mmn- Frie-" he blinked awake and bit down a moan, "Nnng, Frieza, what are you doing?"

"Waking you up," the icejin licked up the shell of his ear and nipped it.

"You're not waking my brain up, and you know that," Yamcha grumbled and rolled them both over so Frieza was laying on him.

"Well~" the icejin purred as he pulled back to face his sleepy human, "I'm going to need what's awake soon~"

"M'kay gorgeous," Yamcha wrapped his arms around Frieza and yawned, "but can it wait till at _least_ 7 am?"

"No~"

"Knew it," he knew there was no talking Frieza out of something when he was in a mood like this. He could feel his tail curling against his legs, "what got you all worked up, hmm?"

"The idea of giving Kuriza a sibling."

 _That_ woke Yamcha up. He blinked back the sleep from his mind and looked at his husband more clearly, who looked rather content, "so… you made up your mind?"

"Mhm~" Frieza curled his tail around Yamcha's leg, his red eyes smouldering as the sun barely made its presence known on the horizon with a deep, purple glow, "and I'd like to practise for it~"

Yamcha could only laugh and wrap his arms tighter around his husband, "alright. Let's practise, then."

* * *

Frieza's cycle hit a month later, and Kuriza was sent to stay at Gohan's with Pan for a week. Yamcha didn't say why, but Gohan didn't seem to mind, and neither did Pan.

It didn't take long, this time, for Frieza to have another egg, though. Just like last time, it arrived on the second day of his cycle, but unlike before, Frieza allowed Yamcha to be with him during the birth of it. It had been easier this time, because Frieza knew what he was in for, and Yamcha's presence had soothed him greatly.

A couple of days later, Kuriza returned home and saw the egg with great surprise. He had been shocked to discover that he was going to have a sibling, but he was extremely excited at it too, which was a relief for both parents.

Seven months later, all three of them crowded around the egg to watch as it cracked and wobbled. It was sunset this time, and Frieza held the nest of blankets as the egg glowed and shattered.

Inside was another icejin almost identical to Frieza, just like Kuriza, but this little one was gold where Kuriza had been brown. The little one seemed to be smaller somehow, too, and their nails were bright red, just like their eyes.

They looked just like a fallen star.

"Woooahh…" Kuriza looked stunned, and so did Yamcha and Frieza both. "What are you going to call them?" he asked.

Yamcha reached out and stroked the little baby's head, and they stretched before curling up and going to sleep. They sure were a quiet one, despite how brightly coloured they were.

"Any ideas?" Frieza asked his husband softly as he cradled their second child.

With a smile, he nodded, "Saffron."


	27. Red Currant

It was clear from the moment Saffron was born, that Kuriza was smitten with his new sibling. As they grew, it became clear that the little icejin was much more like Cooler in terms of their temperament, something that Frieza found very strange.

It didn't take long to bring them out of their shell, though, and once Saffron grew to be able to walk and talk, they began to open up and laugh with the rest of the family. They were still less rambunctious than Kuriza and his friends, however, but it was a peace that Frieza began to enjoy from his second child.

Then, they made a choice once they turned one year old. One day, they had been at home, reading their textbooks on biology when Saffron asked Yamcha, "daddy, what is this?"

"Whatcha mean, sweetie?" the now full time father came over, Puar as always by his side. Frieza wasn't currently home, as he was in space with Kuriza to introduce him to the family business, as it was.

They pointed to the page. There was an anatomical diagram of a male human, and a female human. Yamcha answered with a smile, "those are the main body types that the human race have."

"Oh ok... why are there 2 different types?"

Well, this was a conversation he didn't realise he needed to have with Saffron, but he sat down with them and said, "Well, one is male and the other is female. The male usually is called 'he' like I am, and the female 'she', although the anatomy doesn't necessarily mean this and they can change what they want to be called. Some even choose to go by 'they', like you do right now, which means they are either neither of them or a mix of both."

"Oh.. then are you a male?" Saffron asked.

Yamcha nodded with a smile, "that's right! And so is your big brother, and your papa."

Saffron looked a little downcast at that, "Then... why does papa go by he if he isn't a human?"

Yamcha wondered where this was going as he continued to explain, "well, as far as I know most of your race goes by he and some choose not to go by either, but you can of course be whatever you want to be. He, she, they, or anything else."

"What about female?" Saffron asked.

"As far as I know, there are none who do," Yamcha smiled, "but that's the ones that live on their own planet and out in space."

"Then…" the gold and white icejin smiled brightly, "can I be a girl from now on?"

Yamcha stroked Saffron's head with a smile, "of course, you can be whoever you want to be."

Saffron's smile was brighter than the sun itself, and she hugged her father tightly. So that had been it - no wonder the little icejin had felt somewhat out of place with being called 'he'. Suddenly, she seemed so much happier having her answers answered, and Yamcha could only smile.

* * *

"She wants to go by female pronouns?"

Yamcha had called up his husband to let him know the news while Saffron continued to read more books, "that's right. Has that ever happened before?"

"It's extraordinarily rare, but yes," Frieza pondered that, "father told me of a few of our race that decided to go by female pronouns after encounters with other races. It doesn't happen often. I'm guessing Saffron's interactions with Bra and Pan helped her understand what gender she wants to be defined as."

"I'm glad for her," Yamcha turned the camera so Frieza could see their daughter happily playing with some toys using her telekinesis, "she seems so much happier already."

Frieza couldn't help but smile too, and turned back to Yamcha, "good work, daddy~"

"Heeeey," Frieza could only snicker at the flush on his partner's cheeks.

"I'll let Kuriza know too, so he uses the right pronouns for his sister," the icejin chuckled, "I'll be home soon, take care~"

"See you soon," Yamcha waved goodbye as the transmission ended.

* * *

Peace reigned on Earth for a long, long time. Those that feared Frieza's eventual rampage eventually realised that such a rampage wouldn't happen, for the Universe had one man to be grateful to.

The one man who gave a murderous villain a chance.

And the villian responded with his everything.

And always would.

 _~Fin_


End file.
